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History Daily

The Lincoln Hospital Takeover

History Daily

Airship | Noiser | Wondery

History

4.42.1K Ratings

🗓️ 14 July 2025

⏱️ 21 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

July 14, 1970. A group of Puerto Rican activists stage an occupation demanding better health care at the Lincoln Hospital in South Bronx, New York City.


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Transcript

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0:00.0

There are more ways than ever to listen to History Daily ad-free.

0:04.1

Listen with Wondry Plus in the Wondry app.

0:06.0

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0:10.6

or you can get all of History Daily plus other fantastic history podcasts at IntoHistory.com.

0:30.6

Thank you. It's just after midday on June 17, 1970 in Manhattan, New York. 22-year-old Miguel Mickey Melendez maneuvers a large truck through the busy streets.

0:35.6

He's never driven something this big before.

0:38.4

The truck belongs to the New York City Health Department,

0:41.0

and Mickey has not been given permission to drive it,

0:43.3

but he's not worried about that right now.

0:45.6

Mickey is a member of the Young Lords Party,

0:47.9

a group of radical civil rights activists.

0:50.6

Mickey and his mostly Puerto Rican comrades

0:52.9

believe there is a tuberculosis epidemic underway in their community,

0:56.6

but no one's doing anything to stop it.

0:59.0

So today, Mickey and the Young Lords have hijacked the city health department's mobile X-ray truck

1:04.1

and brought it to their headquarters.

1:06.6

Mickey nears the corner of Madison Avenue and 111st Street.

1:10.5

Waiting for him there is a crowd of nearly 200 people.

1:13.9

They clap and cheer Mickey's arrival as he brings the vehicle to a jerking stop.

1:18.9

And with the truck safely parked, Mickey opens the driver's door and climbs out.

1:23.7

He smiles at some of the faces he recognizes in the crowd as he rams the vehicle.

1:28.3

Then he opens up the back of the truck to reveal an x-ray machine and two very confused technicians.

...

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