Happy Labour Day
Good morning, we have made it to another beautiful Monday. I hope that you had an amazing and an enjoyable weekend and took some time to unplug from your electronics, spend time with your family and friends and get back into nature.
Today marks a special day for American and Canadian citizens. It is Labor Day and its purpose is honoring the workers and taking time to acknowledge their contributions to society. In many other countries May Day serves a similar purpose.
In the United States, Peter J. McGuire, a union leader who had founded the United Brotherhood of Carpenters in 1881, is generally given credit for the idea of Labor Day. In 1882 he suggested to the Central Labor Union of NY that there be a celebration honouring American workers. On September 5 some 10,000 workers, under the sponsorship of the Knights of Labor , held a parade in New York City. There was no particular significance to the date, and McGuire said that it was chosen because it fell roughly halfway between the 4th of July holiday and Thanksgiving. In 1884 the Knights of Labor adopted a resolution that the first Monday in September be considered Labor Day.
In 1894 the Pullman strike in Illinois, as well as a series of unemployed workers’ riots on May Day in Cleveland, prompted U.S. Pres. Grover Clevelan to propose a bill that would make Labor Day a national public holiday. The bill, which was crafted in part to deflect attention from May Day (an unofficial observance rooted in socialist movements), was signed into law in June of that year.
Over the years, particularly as the influence of unions waned, the significance of Labor Day in the United States changed. For many people it became an end-of-summer celebration and a long weekend for family get-togethers. At the same time, it has continued to be celebrated with parades and speeches, as well as political rallies, and the day is sometimes the official kickoff date for national political campaigns.
In Canada the first parades of workers were held in 1872 in Ottawa and Toronto, and later in that year the law making labour unions illegal was repealed. McGuire was invited to speak at the celebration in 1882. In 1894 Parliament officially recognized the holiday in Canada.
Most other countries honour workers on May Day (May 1). The day was a major holiday in communist countries, and it continues to be important where left-wing political parties and labour movements wield influence.
I hope that you will take a few minutes and just honor those workers around you as you go about your day. I hope that you have the most amazing day. I look forward to seeing you next week , remember to always be kind as it costs nothing. If you see someone without a smile give them yours you really don't know whose life you could change.
Written by: Beautifulchaos318
