July 22nd to July 31st
Monday, July 22nd, 1968 - During his first court appearance for the murder of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., James Earl Ray enters a plea of not guilty.
Tuesday, July 23rd, 1968 - In the Glenville ghetto district of Cleveland, Ohio, police and Black militants engage in a fierce shootout which leaves 8 dead and 23 others wounded.
Wednesday, July 24th, 1968 - The four-day Newport Folk Festival gets underway in Newport, Rhode Island. Performers include Janis Joplin, Joan Baez, Pete Seeger, and Arlo Guthrie.
Thursday, July 25th, 1968 - Pope Paul VI issues his controversial encyclical "Humanae Vitae" (of Human Life), which reaffirms the Catholic Church's prohibition of abortion and contraception.
Friday, July 26th, 1968 - Senator Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) announces he would not accept the Democratic Vice-Presidential nomination if it were offered to him.
Saturday, July 27th, 1968 - Bolivian President René Barrientos Ortuño names an all-military cabinet to halt a rebellion against his government brought on by the publication of the diary of Ernesto (Che) Guevara.
Sunday, July 28th, 1968 - Walter Cronkite hosts a special on CBS television called "Cities of the Future", looking at how pollution, congestion, and slums threaten to reduce American urban centers to a vast wasteland.
Monday, July 29th, 1968 - In Arenal, Costa Rica a volcano which had been dormant for 450 years erupts, killing 87 people and destroying the town.
Tuesday, July 30th, 1968 - Final reports on fiscal year 1968 (ending June 30th) show a U.S. budget deficit of $25.4 billion, the largest since World War II.
Wednesday, July 31st, 1968 - Only seven months after opening, the Beatles' Apple Boutique in London is closed due to mismanagement and the entire inventory of merchandise is given away.