Look up the history of Labor Day, and you might find the following: “Observed the first Monday in September, Labor Day is an annual celebration of the social and economic achievements of American workers. The holiday is rooted in the late nineteenth century, when labor activists pushed for a federal holiday to recognize the many contributions workers have made to America’s strength, prosperity, and well-being” This gave me food for thought. Stop to think about all that has transpired in the history of the establishment of our great country.
There have been so many who have used their ingenuity, skills, strength, inventiveness, and talents to build all that we, as Americans, enjoy. I think of those who built the highways, railroads and airports to allow transportation to thrive, those who designed and developed our cities, towns and communities with stores, schools, homes, and businesses, those who built the dams and reservoirs so we have ready access to clean water, those who pulled the plows to clear the fields to grow our food, those who laid the lines that brought communication across the nation, those who invented all the machinery in all the plants that produce everything we need in our homes and businesses, and the list could go on and on. These are the laborers who have built, and are still building, what we know today.
I think of all those who in the past crossed our land in covered wagons with all their possessions searching for greener pastures. Then when I read the history of the Industrial Revolution, I think of all the workers who have built the automobile industry, all the heavy machinery we now have, all the factories that have produced so many varied products too numerous to mention. I’ve read several books about how during WWII many women stepped into factory jobs in place of the men who had gone to war and kept the wheels of our economy thriving. I think about all the farm families where everyone works side by side to do all the chores and cultivation required in running the farm. All this goes into the labor force of America.
The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. It was estimated that over 20,000 took part in that parade.
In 1894, President Grover Cleveland signed a law making the first Monday in September of each year a national holiday. By a resolution of the American Federation of Labor Convention of 1909, the Sunday preceding Labor Day was adopted as Labor Sunday and dedicated to the spiritual and educational aspects of the labor movement. American labor has surely raised our standard of living and all those who work continue to bring us closer to realizing the traditional ideals of economic and political democracy. So, today and tomorrow our nation pays tribute to all those who contribute to our nation’s strength, freedom and leadership – the American workers. Happy Labor Day!
Ann Marie Ricci may be reached with April Sound news at jamricci@consolidated.net.
