Topic summary

May 1987

Extracted from the Wikipedia article 1987.

May 4 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules in Rotary Int'l v. Rotary Club of Duarte that local Rotary Clubs do not have a constitutional right to deny membership to women. Other clubs thereafter comply with the ruling: Lions International begins admitting women in June, and Kiwanis Club in July.
May 8 – Loughgall ambush: A 24-man unit of the British Army Special Air Service (SAS) ambushed eight members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) as they mounted an attack on a Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) barracks. All IRA members were killed as well as one civilian.
May 9 – A Soviet-made Ilyushin Il-62 airliner, operated by LOT Polish Airlines, crashes into a forest just outside Warsaw, killing all 183 people on board.
May 11 – Klaus Barbie goes on trial in Lyon for war crimes committed during World War II.
May 14 – Lieutenant Colonel Sitiveni Rabuka executes a bloodless coup in Fiji.
May 17 – Iran–Iraq War: USS Stark is hit by two Iraqi-owned Exocet AM39 air-to-surface missiles killing 37 sailors.
May 22
- The Hashimpura massacre occurs in Meerut, India.
- The inaugural Rugby World Cup hosted by both New Zealand and Australia kicks off. In the opening match of the new tournament, New Zealand beat Italy in the pool stage.