Today in Labor History—June 6

A Rake's Progress, by William Hogarth, depicting a man's downfall to debtor's prison

June 6, 1778 – Debtors prisons were abolished in the U.S., though debtors continued to flourish and creditors came up with numerous other ways to punish them. (From the Daily Bleed)

U.S. Amphibious transport landing on Omaha Beach

 June 6, 1944 - British, U.S. and Canadian troops landed on the beaches of Normandy, France, for the suicidal assault known as D-Day. Over 150,000 men and 5,000 ships took part in the operation, with an estimated 10,000 allied troops dying. (From Workday Minnesota)

June 6, 1961 – A Military junta took over in South Korea. (From the Daily Bleed)

June 6, 1978 – Proposition 13 passed in California, allowing commercial property owners to maintain phenomenally low property tax rates and bleed the state of revenues for education and public services. (From the Daily Bleed)

June 6, 1982 – Israel invaded Lebanon, remaining until June 6, 1985. (From the Daily Bleed)

June 6, 1982 – An antinuclear rally at the Rose Bowl, in Pasadena, California, drew 85,000 people who heard Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Jackson Browne, Linda Ronstadt, Stevie Wonder and Tom Petty. (From the Daily Bleed)

June 6, 1988 – 2 million people participated in a 3-day General Strike in South Africa. (From the Daily Bleed)

June 6, 1989 – Citizens voted to shut down the Rancho Seco nuclear plant in Sacramento, California. There had been a near melt-down in 1985 that had been covered-up until after the Chernobyl disaster. (From the Daily Bleed)

June 6, 2000 – Brazilian Rancher Jeronimo Alves Amorim was sentenced to 19 years for ordering the murder of union leader Expedito Ribeiro de Souza. (From the Daily Bleed)