Today in Labor History—June 8

June 8, 1852 –The first documented labor strike in San Francisco occurred when Chinese laborers demanded a raise while working on the Parrott granite building. (From the Daily Bleed)

June 8, 1904 – A battle between the Colorado Militia and striking mine workers at Dunnville ended with six union members dead and 15 taken prisoner. (See Colorado Labor Wars, Today in Labor History—June 7) 79 of the strikers were deported to Kansas thanks to Rockefeller, who effectively owned the state government and militia. (From the Daily Bleed)

USS Liberty

June 8, 1967 – Israeli aircraft and boats attacked the USS Liberty during Israel's "Six Day War." The unprovoked assault killed 34 U.S. sailors and wounded 170. The U.S. government “investigated” the attack and issued a whitewashed report calling it an unfortunate mistake. However, witnesses and critics dispute this claim, calling it a deliberate attack by Israel to silence U.S. criticism of Israel’s war tactics. According to George Ball, undersecretary of state at the time, the attack set the stage for future Israeli policy by sending the message to Israel's leaders “that nothing they might do would offend the Americans to the point of reprisal. If America’s leaders did not have the courage to punish Israel for the blatant murder of American citizens, it seemed clear that their American friends would let them get away with almost anything." (From the Daily Bleed, Democracy Now and Wikipedia)