May 1st, International Workers' Day, commemorates the historic struggle of
working people throughout the world, and is recognized in every country except
the United States, Canada, and South Africa. This despite the fact that the
holiday began in the 1880s in the United States, with the fight for an
eight-hour work day.
In 1884, the Federation of Organized Trades and Labor Unions passed a
resolution stating that eight hours would constitute a legal day's work from
and after May 1, 1886
The resolution called for a general strike to achieve
the goal, since legislative methods had already failed.
The police and militia were increased in size and
received new and powerful weapons financed by local business leaders
Nevertheless, by May 1st, the
movement had already won gains for many Chicago clothing cutters, shoemakers,
and packing-house workers
on May 3, 1886, police fired into a crowd of
strikers
killing four and wounding
many
clipped from: flag.blackened.net