by Adolfo Salinas

While Labor Day may seem like a lesser holiday to students who only see it as an excuse to get a day off from school, or the last chance for the more fashion oriented to wear white, Labor Day has a long and celebrated history in America. Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is the creation of the 1800’s labor movement and is dedicated to the achievements of American workers.

Even though it has been over a hundred years after the first time Labor Day was celebrated, and there is still doubt over who first proposed it, it’s known the Central Labor Union in New York celebrated it on Tuesday, September 5, 1882 (it would be switched to Monday two years later). The Central Labor Union urged other groups in other cities to follow their example and celebrate a “working mans’ holiday” on that day. The idea began the spread with the growth of labor groups, and in 1885 Labor Day was celebrated in many industrial cities around the country. In 1887 Oregon became the first state to make Labor Day an official holiday, with Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York following their lead shortly after.

Then things began to turn very violent for the Labor Unions and Labor Day had stiff competition. When legislators and employers failed to put the eight-hour workday by May 1, 1886, the result was the bloody Haymarket Riot in Chicago that eventually left eight police officers dead and four labor activists hanged. In 1894, after then President Grover Cleveland ordered the brutal suppression of the Pullman Strike, he then realized he had to do something to win favor with labor movement, which viewed him with disgust. Following the lead of several states, Cleveland made the first Monday in September a federal holiday in honor of the working men; the maneuver didn’t work though, he lost the Democratic nomination.

The celebration of Labor Day was used to be a parade to show to the public “the strength and spirit of the trade and labor organizations,” followed by a festival for the workers and their families. Though the celebration has undergone many changes in recent years, mainly dealing with addresses by leading officials, this day gives the hard working student (many who are workers themselves) a much needed day of rest that can be enjoyed with each other.