Happy International Workers day to those that organise and celebrate #iwd
Happy International Workers day to those that organise and celebrate #iwd
INTERNATIONAL WORKERS' DAY AND THE HAYMARKET AFFAIR
May 1st is International Workers Day and has been a day commemorating and celebrating the working class going back to the late 19th century. But do you know why May 1st was chosen?
Originally May 1st was the site of a Spring festival in Europe. May 1st was chosen to celebrate workers because of an event known in history as "The Haymarket Affair" or "Haymarket Riot" named after Haymarket Square in Chicago, USA.
Briefly, in 1886 in Chicago from May 1st to May 4th strikes, marches and protests were being organised to campaign for an 8 hour working day. Police were responding to these demonstrations with violence and some strikers were killed with many others injured. At a demonstration organised for Haymarket Square on May 4th 1886 someone (and to this day no one knows who) threw a bomb at police who were advancing to disperse the demonstration. The police responded by firing randomly into the crowd, causing more deaths and injuries.
As a result, 8 anarchists and labour organisers were arrested and charged, on zero evidence, with conspiracy to make and throw the bomb. Only two of the men were even at Haymarket at the time. The trial was a show trial based on a red scare and all the newspapers (owned by big businessmen than as now) blamed the workers' rights movement for the violence, categorising the whole movement as a violent one in malicious anti-worker rhetoric. This largely stained the movement for many years to come. Seven of the accused were condemned to death whilst one got 15 years in prison. Four of the men eventually hanged, one committed suicide in jail. In no case had their guilt been shown.
The May 1st date was chosen to celebrate workers in commemoration of these brave, innocent souls.
Happy May Day for those who celebrate
#Australia #MayDay #IWD
May Day International Workers' Day celebrations in London, Ontario
Sunday, May 4th, 2025 at noon!
(held on the weekend instead of May 1st to be accessible to more people).
Where: NW corner of Victoria Park (Richmond St & Central Ave)
What: Speakers, rally, info tabling, sharing resources & strategizing!
Endorse or get involved: forestcitysolidarity at riseup.net
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I wrote a piece for the Irish Examiner in light of #iwd and #equalPayDay on my work with PayGap.ie
https://www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/commentanalysis/arid-41601622.html
A woman sprays paint on the statue of Luis Carlos Galán during a protest to mark International Women’s Day, Bogota, #Colombia
Photograph: Luisa González/Reuters
IWD Voices: Yuriko Chikuyama – ‘My Mission Is to Create an Environment Where It Is Natural for Women to Stand Up’ https://www.byteseu.com/825151/ #1 #environment #iwd #VlmOgilvy
Middle East and North Africa (MENA) News Highlights, Mar. 11, 2025. News today on: Syria, Kurds, Sudan, Western Sahara, #IWD, Algeria, Tunisia, Tamazight, Turkiye, Iran, Palestinian Authority, Egypt, Gaza, Hamas, Morocco, Lebanon - paid, then free subscribers see posts first, please consider subscribing. https://www.patreon.com/posts/124123940?utm_campaign=postshare_creator
Women, Data and Conservation: Protecting St Helena's unique biodiversity
A really nice post from the RSPB on the women working to protect St Helena's incredible biodiversity
A person holds a smoke flare in front of the Colosseum during a protest to mark International Women's Day, in Rome, #Italy, March 8. REUTERS/Yara Nardi
Rimma, 26, from Ukraine poses for a portrait as she takes part in a demonstration to mark International Women's Day in Barcelona, #Spain, March 8. REUTERS/Nacho Doce
A demonstrator looks on ahead of the protest to mark International Women's Day in Madrid, #Spain, March 8. REUTERS/Susana Vera
A demonstrator poses for a photo on the day of a protest to mark International Women's Day in #Mexico City, March 8. REUTERS/Quetzalli Nicte-Ha
A woman takes part in a protest to mark International Women's Day in Rome, #Italy, March 8. REUTERS/Yara Nardi
A demonstrator sits on the statue of Luis Carlos Galan during a protest to mark International Women's Day in Bogota, #Colombia. REUTERS/Luisa Gonzalez
A woman with her face painted, looks on next to other demonstrators as they march to mark International Women's Day, in Guadalajara, #Mexico. REUTERS/Alejandra Leyva
Women wearing masks hold signs with the names of victims of gender-based violence, during a demonstration to mark International Women's Day in Madrid, #Spain. REUTERS/Susana Vera
Indigenous woman Bekoy Tupinamba participates in a march to mark International Women's Day in Sao Paulo, #Brazil, March 8. REUTERS/Amanda Perobelli
Missed an episode of Pink Ladies? Or want to relive your favorite moments with the cheeky duo? Now you can! The podcast is now live, starting with last week's episode all about #IWD. Just remember to keep young ears away https://pnc.st/s/pink-ladies #CatchUp #Podcast #radio