We celebrate Labor Day not as Republicans think to
"work and the prosperity it brings" but in rememberance of those who died so we could have the working conditions we take for granted. The events at
Haymarket Square in Chicago were part of the catalyst which produced Labor Day.
In the first days of May in 1886 workers in Chicago began protesting to demand the impossible: an eight hour work day. Actually Chicago had passed a law mandating an eight hour work day way back in 1867, but it had never been enforced. The local business leaders were unanamous that the very idea was preposterous and would destroy Chicago's economy.
On May 1st and 2nd protests and marches demanded the eight hour work day without incident. On May 3rd August Spies held a rally near the McCormic Reaper Plant where the owner, Cyrus McCormic had locked out striking workers and was running the plant with strikebreakers. A handful of protesters heckled the strikebreakers during shift change. The police attacked the hecklers without warning and with deadly force killing at least two.
On May 4th a rally was held at Haymarket Square in the city to demand justice. The mayor feared a riot, and gathered police forces but there was no riot. The proceding was peaceful and around 10pm the mayor left after telling the police commanders they too should leave. Only around 300 workers remained on the scene.
The police commanders however did not obey the mayor's orders. Instead a police captian raised his hand and ordered "In the name of the people of Illinois, I command you to disperse in peace." Police then began beating the crowd with clubs.
One of the crowd threw a bomb into the polie lines which killed one officer immediately, and six others later died of injuries from the bomb. At this the police drew their guns and began firing wildly. Seven or eight people in the crowd were killed by police fire, as were six police officers. Around 100 people were injured by police gunfire, almost half were police officers injured through friendly fire.
The government of Chicago used the incident to purge important labor leaders. Eight were charged with conspiricy, and dispite the fact that several were conclusively able to prove that they were nowhere near the square all but one were sentenced to hang.
On the third annaversary of the police riot the government of Chicago erected a statue in memorial of the fallen police officers. Since its erection on May 4, 1889 the statue has been knocked down three times, most recently in 1970 by the Weather Underground.
On Labor Day we remember the sacrifices of those who fought, and were murdered, to claim the benefits we take for granted. This is not a day for celebrating work, but for celebrating those who ensured that work was paid, that workers were not worked to death.