Today in Labor History—June 1

Spaniards Executing Tupac Amaru in 1572

June 1, 1572 – The Battle of Coyaochaca between Hurtado de Arbieto and the rebel army of Tupac Amaru was fought in Peru. (From the Daily Bleed)

June 1, 1771 – A crowd of women was arrested while destroying the fences around Rewhay Common, England. Another group of women marched to Burton-on-Trent where they freed their comrades. (From the Daily Bleed)

June 1, 1855 – American adventurer (pirate) William Walker conquered Nicaragua, ceded it to the U.S. south, and reintroduced slavery. (From the Daily Bleed)

Captain Jack, Chief of Modoc, 1864

 June 1, 1873 – Captain Jack finally surrendered to U.S. troops. Many of his own people had joined with the U.S. forces to help capture him. Captain Jack had led the most expensive Indian War in US history. (From the Daily Bleed)

Striking Mexican Miners in Cananea Confront U.S. Soldiers

 June 1, 1906 – The bloody Cananea copper miners' strike began in Sonora, Mexico. The miners were demanding 5 pesos a day and an 8-hour workday. As many as 100 miners were killed. (From the Daily Bleed)

June 1, 1909 – W. E. DuBois founded the NAACP. (From the Daily Bleed)

June 1, 1914 – 80 militia men refused to board a train as reinforcements for the U.S. invasion of Veracruz, Mexico. (From the Daily Bleed)

Ruins of Ludlow Miners' Tent Camp (Library of Congress)

 June 1, 1914 – U.S. troops arrived in Colorado to reclaim coal mines from striking miners, after the Colorado National Guard massacred 19 in the miners’ camp. 2 women and 11 children were among those killed. (From the Daily Bleed, and here and here)

June 1, 1916 – Pacific Coast longshoremen (ILA) struck up and down the Pacific coast. (From the Daily Bleed)

Propaganda Poster depicting a foreign imperialist and local war lord torturing a Chinese patriot, May 30th movement

 June 1, 1925 – The Shanghai General Strike began, as part of an ongoing labor insurgency occurring throughout China's industrial cities. (From the Daily Bleed)

June 1, 1929 --A meeting of the Korean Anarchist Federation (KAF) was held in Peking in which it was decided to divert all resources outside Korea itself to Manchuria. Over 2 million Koreans were living in Manchuria at the time, and the KAF was a significant force. Their significance was short-lived, however, as the Japanese attacked from the south, while Stalinists attacked from the north. By 1931, many of the anarchist leaders were dead and the region was devastated. (From the Daily Bleed and The Korean Anarchist Movement)

June 1, 1942 - The Polish Socialist newspaper, Liberty Brigade, made the first public report that that the Nazis were gassing Jews by the thousands. In the article, they published an interview with a young Jew, Emanuel Ringelblum, who had escaped the Chelmno death camp. (From Workday Minnesota)

June 1, 1963 – The U.S. Supreme Court banned formal prayers and religious exercises from public schools. (From the Daily Bleed)

June 1, 1968 – Libertarian Socialist Helen Keller died in Westport, Connecticut. (From the Daily Bleed)

June 1, 1981 – Two Filipino longshore labor organizers, Domingo & Viernes, were assassinated in Seattle, Washington on orders of U.S.-backed dictator Ferdinand Marcos. (From the Daily Bleed)