Today in Labor History—February 27

Guards' cannon dragged to Montmartre During Paris Commune (contemporary sketch)

February 27, 1871 – The Paris Commune began when regular soldiers, sent to confiscate cannon from the National Guard militia in Paris, were confronted by the crowd and then decided to fraternize with them. (From the Daily Bleed)

Cartoon showing US Socialist Presidential candidate, Eugen V. Debs, who ran from in prison in the 1920 election.

 February 27, 1875 – Eugene V. Debs became a charter member and secretary of the Vigo Lodge, Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen. By 1880, he had become grand secretary of the national Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and editor of the Locomotive Fireman's Magazine. He later led the bitter Pullman strike. (From the Daily Bleed)

February 27, 1902 – John Steinbeck was born on this date in Salinas, California. Steinbeck, who won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1962, wrote numerous novels from the perspective of farmers and the working class, including The Grapes of Wrath (1939), Tortilla Flats, Of Mice and Men, Cannery Row & East of Eden. (1952). (From the Daily Bleed)

February 27, 1912 – “The Times" of London published a lead story about a "conspiracy" of unions to take over ownership of British coal mines. The piece was based on a pamphlet, "The Miner's Next Step," which had been printed in Tonypandy, a scene of recent bloodshed between strikers and police. The pamphlet, written by the South Wales Miner's Federation, called for direct action and industrial solidarity. (From the Daily Bleed)

February 27, 1933 – Berlin's Reichstag parliament building was torched. The Nazi's tried to blame it on communists as a ploy in their steady consolidation of total power. (From the Daily Bleed)

Jarama Valley, Woody Guthrie

February 27, 1937 – Lincoln Brigadiers attacked Pingarrón Hill ("Suicide Hill") in Jarama Valley, Spain. Of the 500 who fought in this infamous battle, over 300 were killed or wounded. The Lincoln Brigade was made up of Americans who went to Spain (in violation of U.S. law) to help fight Franco and the fascists. (From the Daily Bleed)

February 27, 1939 - Following a decade of sit-down strikes, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that sit-down strikes were illegal. (From Workday Minnesota)

February 27, 1942 – The Seattle School Board accepted the forced resignation of Japanese-American teachers. (From the Daily Bleed)


February 27, 1943 – A mine disaster killed 74 workers at Red Lodge, Montana. (From the Daily Bleed)

February 27, 1973 – 300 Oglala Sioux American Indian Movement (A.I.M.) activists liberated and occupied Wounded Knee, South Dakota (the site of the 1890 massacre of Sioux by the U.S. cavalry), in response to a campaign of terror by tribal and FBI officials. From the Daily Bleed)

February 27, 2001 – Seattle ACORN workers went on strike. Their office shut was down after their employer refused to recognize Public Interest Workers IU 670 union of the IWW. From the Daily Bleed)

Today in Labor History—December 20

December 20, 1790 - The first American cotton mill began operation in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. The mill, owned by Samuel Slater, employed children aged 4-10. (From workday Minnesota and the Daily Bleed)

December 20, 1905 -- An 11-day General Strike began in Russia to bring down the Czar.

December 20, 1957 -- Brittish working class singer/songwriter Billy Bragg was born on this date. Bragg was a strong supporter of the 1984 miners strike and has been an outspoken critic of fascim, racism, sexism and homophobia.

 

The Ghost of Tom Joad, by Woody Guthrie

December 20, 1968—John Steinbeck died on this date. He was most famous for novels written from the perspective of working men and women, the poor and downtrodden, including East of Eden, Grapes of Wrath, Of Mice and Men, Tortilla Flats and Cannery Row. (From the Daily Bleed)

Today in Labor History—October 3

October 3, 1902 - President Theodore Roosevelt met with miners and coal field operators and tried to settle the 5-month long anthracite coal strike, the first time a president had personally intervened in a labor-management dispute. Three weeks later, the miners settled. (From Workday Minnesota)

October 3, 1915 – The World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) was founded. (From the Daily Bleed)

October 3, 1920 – The Modern School at Clivio, Italy was reopened and then shut down again by the government. (From the Daily Bleed)

October 3, 1932 – All 164 students at Kincaid High School in Illinois walked out on strike to protest their school’s use of scab labor to provide heating coal. (From the Daily Bleed)

October 3, 1945 – A seven-state Greyhound bus strike took place. (From theDaily Bleed)

October 3, 1967 – Woody Guthrie died of Huntington's disease at the age of 52. (From the Daily Bleed)

October 3, 1970— Baseball umpires called their first strike (against employers instead of players). (From the Daily Bleed)

Mural dedicated to the Hunger Strikers, Derry, Northern Ireland

 October 3, 1981 -- A hunger strike by Irish nationalists at Maze Prison in Belfast, was called off after seven months and ten deaths. Striking prisoner Bobby Sands, who was elected to parliament from his jail cell during the hunger strike, eventually died from his protest. (From the Daily Bleed)

Today in Labor History—July 14

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Prise de la Bastille, by Jean-Pierre-Louis-Laurent Houel.

July 14, 1789 – Parisians stormed the Bastille, marking the beginning of the French Revolution. The Bastille was a symbol of tyranny, feudal authority and the "divine" rights of kings. The revolution sparked optimism among working people throughout the world. However, only the middle-classes gained control. (From the Daily Bleed)

July 14, 1798 – The Federalist-sponsored Alien and Sedition Acts made it a crime to write, utter or publish "any false, scandalous, & malicious" statements about the government, Congress, or the President. Republicans arrested, including newspaper editors and one member of Congress. Jefferson denounced the laws as a violation of the 1^st Amendment. (From the Daily Bleed and Wikipedia)

July 14, 1811 -- England: Luddites attacked machines in Sunnon-in-Ashuano. (From the Daily Bleed)

Buenaventura Durruti

July 14, 1896 – Legendary Spanish anarchist and military strategist Buenaventura Durruti was born. Durruti helped organize attacks on the government of dictator Miguel Primo de Riviera in 1923. He was influential in the anarchist federation FAI and the syndicalist union CNT. Durruti is probably best known for leading thousands of anarchist troops (the Durruti Column) against the Franco dictatorship. (From the Daily Bleed and Wikipedia)

Woody Guthrie's Guitar Kills Fascists, Library of Congress

 July 14, 1912 – Folk singer Woody Guthrie was born. (From Workday Minnesota)

July 14, 1921 – The Sacco and Vanzetti case went to the jury. At 7:30 pm the jury returned its verdict: both were both found guilty of murder in the first degree. (From the Daily Bleed)

Today in Labor History—February 27

Guards' cannon dragged to Montmartre During Paris Commune (contemporary sketch)

February 27, 1871 – The Paris Commune began when regular soldiers, sent to confiscate cannon from the National Guard militia in Paris, were confronted by the crowd and then decided to fraternize with them. (From the Daily Bleed)

Cartoon showing US Socialist Presidential candidate, Eugen V. Debs, who ran from in prison in the 1920 election.

 February 27, 1875 – Eugene V. Debs became a charter member and secretary of the Vigo Lodge, Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen. By 1880, he had become grand secretary of the national Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and editor of the Locomotive Fireman's Magazine. He later led the bitter Pullman strike. (From the Daily Bleed)

February 27, 1902 – John Steinbeck was born on this date in Salinas, California. Steinbeck, who won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1962, wrote numerous novels from the perspective of farmers and the working class, including The Grapes of Wrath (1939), Tortilla Flats, Of Mice and Men, Cannery Row & East of Eden. (1952). (From the Daily Bleed)

February 27, 1912 – “The Times" of London published a lead story about a "conspiracy" of unions to take over ownership of British coal mines. The piece was based on a pamphlet, "The Miner's Next Step," which had been printed in Tonypandy, a scene of recent bloodshed between strikers and police. The pamphlet, written by the South Wales Miner's Federation, called for direct action and industrial solidarity. (From the Daily Bleed)

February 27, 1933 – Berlin's Reichstag parliament building was torched. The Nazi's tried to blame it on communists as a ploy in their steady consolidation of total power. (From the Daily Bleed)

Jarama Valley, Woody Guthrie

February 27, 1937 – Lincoln Brigadiers attacked Pingarrón Hill ("Suicide Hill") in Jarama Valley, Spain. Of the 500 who fought in this infamous battle, over 300 were killed or wounded. The Lincoln Brigade was made up of Americans who went to Spain (in violation of U.S. law) to help fight Franco and the fascists. (From the Daily Bleed)

February 27, 1939 - Following a decade of sit-down strikes, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that sit-down strikes were illegal. (From Workday Minnesota)

February 27, 1942 – The Seattle School Board accepted the forced resignation of Japanese-American teachers. (From the Daily Bleed)


February 27, 1943 – A mine disaster killed 74 workers at Red Lodge, Montana. (From the Daily Bleed)

February 27, 1973 – 300 Oglala Sioux American Indian Movement (A.I.M.) activists liberated and occupied Wounded Knee, South Dakota (the site of the 1890 massacre of Sioux by the U.S. cavalry), in response to a campaign of terror by tribal and FBI officials. From the Daily Bleed)

February 27, 2001 – Seattle ACORN workers went on strike. Their office shut was down after their employer refused to recognize Public Interest Workers IU 670 union of the IWW. From the Daily Bleed)

Today in Labor History—October 3

October 3, 1902 - President Theodore Roosevelt met with miners and coal field operators and tried to settle the 5-month long anthracite coal strike, the first time a president had personally intervened in a labor-management dispute. Three weeks later, the miners settled. (From Workday Minnesota)

October 3, 1915 – The World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) was founded. (From the Daily Bleed)

October 3, 1920 – The Modern School at Clivio, Italy was reopened and then shut down again by the government. (From the Daily Bleed)

October 3, 1932 – All 164 students at Kincaid High School in Illinois walked out on strike to protest their school’s use of scab labor to provide heating coal. (From the Daily Bleed)

October 3, 1945 – A seven-state Greyhound bus strike took place. (From the Daily Bleed)

October 3, 1967 – Woody Guthrie died of Huntington's disease at the age of 52. (From the Daily Bleed)

October 3, 1970— Baseball umpires called their first strike (against employers instead of players). (From the Daily Bleed)

Mural dedicated to the Hunger Strikers, Derry, Northern Ireland

 October 3, 1981 -- A hunger strike by Irish nationalists at Maze Prison in Belfast, was called off after seven months and ten deaths. Striking prisoner Bobby Sands, who was elected to parliament from his jail cell during the hunger strike, eventually died from his protest. (From the Daily Bleed)

Today in Labor History—July 14

Prise de la Bastille, by Jean-Pierre-Louis-Laurent Houel.

July 14, 1789 – Parisians stormed the Bastille, marking the beginning of the French Revolution. The Bastille was a symbol of tyranny, feudal authority and the "divine" rights of kings. The revolution sparked optimism among working people throughout the world. However, only the middle-classes gained control. (From the Daily Bleed)

July 14, 1798 – The Federalist-sponsored Alien and Sedition Acts made it a crime to write, utter or publish "any false, scandalous, & malicious" statements about the government, Congress, or the President. Republicans arrested, including newspaper editors and one member of Congress. Jefferson denounced the laws as a violation of the 1^st Amendment. (From the Daily Bleed and Wikipedia)

July 14, 1811 -- England: Luddites attacked machines in Sunnon-in-Ashuano. (From the Daily Bleed)

Buenaventura Durruti

July 14, 1896 – Legendary Spanish anarchist and military strategist Buenaventura Durruti was born. Durruti helped organize attacks on the government of dictator Miguel Primo de Riviera in 1923. He was influential in the anarchist federation FAI and the syndicalist union CNT. Durruti is probably best known for leading thousands of anarchist troops (the Durruti Column) against the Franco dictatorship. (From the Daily Bleed and Wikipedia)

Woody Guthrie's Guitar Kills Fascists, Library of Congress

 July 14, 1912 – Folk singer Woody Guthrie was born. (From Workday Minnesota)

July 14, 1921 – The Sacco and Vanzetti case went to the jury. At 7:30 pm the jury returned its verdict: both were both found guilty of murder in the first degree. (From the Daily Bleed)