On February 25, 1986, two candidates took their oath for the presidency of the Republic of the Philippines. One was the incumbent, one of the most powerful men in the country’s history and the world. The other was the widow of his staunchest political rival.

Two days before, on February 23,1986, millions of Filipinos began to amass at the Epifanio De Los Santos Avenue (EDSA). They answered the call of Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin to defend former Marcos loyalists General Fidel V. Ramos, then chief of the Philippine Constabulary, and Juan Ponce Enrile, the Minister of Defense. They set up a human barricade that faced the worst of President Ferdinand Marcos’ military machinery. Armed with rosaries and flowers, nuns, priests, students, workers and a representative of virtually every sector in society stood between the guns and tanks and the rebels, protesting the Snap Election results that were held on February 7, 1986. While the Commission on Elections declared Marcos the winner, events led to the eventual inauguration of Corazon C. Aquino, widow of slain Senator Ninoy Aquino.