Today is not just Star Wars day.
Eugene V. Debs was not involved with the Haymarket affair, however, he rose to prominence shortly after that. If you don’t know the Haymarket affair, it was a huge labor rally in Chicago of workers who wanted an 8-Hour workday. In 1884 the unions decided that by 1886 they would have this, and because the companies hadn’t met their goals, there was a massive strike that year.
There was a massive May Day rally, where each city in America had at least 10,000 people in attendance. In Chicago, Albert Parsons lead an 80,000 person rally. As several long standing strikes continued, August Spies organized a rally on May 4th. Many famous labor activists spoke and the event was peaceful. The police and the Pinkertons (Think a private security force, and you would be right.) were itching for a fight.
And a fight they got.
Someone in the crowd threw a bomb. The police accused the rally attendees, the people at the rally blamed the police. Who ever threw the bomb, they were lost to history. The police opened fire into the crowd killing 4 and wounding about 70. 7 police were killed, 2 more died from their injuries, and 60 were wounded in the melee that followed.
August Spies and 7 other activists were arrested and put on trial. Despite being known to be nowhere near the rally when the bomb was thrown, August Spies was sentenced with 6 of the other activists to death. Oscar Neebe was sentenced for 15 years. Samuel Fielden (Who was speaking when the bomb was thrown) and Michael Schwab had their sentences communed to life in prison. Louis Lingg, before his execution, smuggled in a bomb that looked like a cigar. His plan was to blow his head off rather than be hung. Sadly, he suffered for 6 hours before he finally passed away from his injuries.
November 11, 1887 August Spies, Adolph Fischer, Albert Parsons, and George Engel, were hung.
Eugene V. Debs rose to prominence in 1894 running the famous Pullman Strike that shut the country down, which had the US Calvary chasing a train across the country trying to stop the strike. Debs ran for president 5 times between 1900 to 1920 and in 1920 he did so from prison also earning over a million votes.
This Star Wars day, think not about those in the Rebel alliance who laid down their lives to end the reign of terror of the Galactic Empire, but rather think of those workers who fought for you to have an 8-hour work day. Those people laid down their lives for you. Continue their legacy by fighting against those who take too much.
We deserve to earn a living wage!
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