[Antiracism] [Workers' Rights] Local May Day Events

[WMass Jobs With Justice]

Dear activists,

Below are some local events on May 1, declared International Labor Day in
1890.  The story of International Labor Day often begins with the U.S.
Eight-Hour Day Strike of 1886.  That is basically how we tell it in "Voices
of Working People's History" - coming to the Northampton Unitarian Society
at 7pm - see below.  But historian David Montgomery reminds us
(www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/26/017.html) that May Day was already Strike
Day:

"The first of May was not only well established in European traditions as a
day of hope, but it was also in every 19th century industrial country the
day on which workers were most likely to go on strike. Workers were usually
paid at the end of the month, which made the beginning of the next month a
time when they both had a little money to sustain them and could see just
how little money they had for all their recent work. Moreover, the spring
months lead the strike list (at least for offensive strikes, when workers
chose the time and place) because the cost of living was lower than in
winter and because the building season was just beginning. I would say that
everywhere building trades workers played a decisive role in making May 1
strike day. When socialists and anarchists declared a labor holiday, they
had one which the working class had already made ready for them. It was a
natural fit between political movements and 'spontaneous' action.

"One way in which this shows up is in the first round of eight-hour day laws
and strikes in 1867-68 in the United States. May 1 was the most common
deadline - starting with the great May 1, 1867 strike in Chicago, almost
twenty years before the Haymarket Affair. ... The point is that this
particular day of struggle fit very neatly into the annual pattern of
struggle practiced by modern industrial workers in the nineteenth century. A
tradition did not need to be invented. A political meaning was infused into
an existing pattern of struggle."

~ PIONEER VALLEY MAY DAY CALENDAR ~

IMMIGRANT RIGHTS RALLY
	Immigrant Rights Are Human Rights ~ An Injustice To One Is An
Injustice To All
	Noon-2pm, Amherst North Common (in case of inclement weather, the
rally will be held at Grace Church Parish Hall). Organized by Western Mass
Coalition for Immigrant and Worker Rights (WMCIWR), a group of organizations
and community members who advocate, educate, organize, and mobilize to
protect the Human, Civil, and Constitutional Rights of all workers and
residents in our communities. Co-sponsored by Artists for Justice, SAGE,
Western Mass. Jobs With Justice, Western Mass. AFSC, Greensboro Justice
Fund, Western Mass. Interfaith Coalition for Peace and Justice, and Western
Mass. CopWatch. The event features local guest speakers, poetry and musical
performances, and opportunities for the public speak out against injustice.
	Current enforcement-only immigration policy in the US tramples on
internationally recognized human rights, including protection of family, the
right to employment, the right to live with dignity and respect, and the
human right of recognition as a person before the law. We cannot tolerate
immigration enforcement’s violation of the rights of immigrants, people of
color, the poor and most vulnerable in our society.
	We demand that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) stop
tearing families apart! Currently 14 million residents of the United States
live in mixed status families, including 3 million citizen children with one
or both undocumented immigrant parents living in fear of deportation.
	Immigrants’ rights are workers’ rights! We believe in the human
right to work for fair wages that ensure living with dignity as well as the
right to form and join a union.
	Immigrants are human beings! We condemn the unreasonable searches
and raids on workers and families, in the homes, the workplace, and the
community. As a community, we must protect all from attacks on their honor
and reputation.
	Equal protection before the law! We believe that everyone is
entitled to protection from arbitrary arrest and detention and that all have
the right to legal representation and due process before the law. No one
should be subjected to torture and cruel or degrading treatment or
punishment.
	Info: wmciwr at gmail.com, http://wmciwr.blogspot.com.

25th ANNUAL CELEBRATION
	3:30-6pm, Brattleboro VT Town Common, Linden St & Park Pl. Free
food. Speakers and live music. Info: 802-387-4060, james at workerscenter.org,
www.workerscenter.org.

MEMORIAL FOR DYER LUM
	5:30-6pm, Bridge St Cemetery, outside of Bridge St School, Route 9,
Northampton. A brief remembrance of Dyer Lum, a Northampton resident and
printer who was a local abolitionist, Civil War veteran, labor activist,
anarchist, poet, and radical agitator. He helped lead efforts to free Albert
Parsons and the other martyrs of the Haymarket affair. Lum died in 1893 and
was buried in the Bridge St cemetery. Info: revoltairine at riseup.net.

VOICES OF WORKING PEOPLE'S HISTORY 
	7-9pm {doors open 6:30}, Unitarian Universalist Society of
Northampton & Florence, 220 Main St, Northampton. Dramatic readings, lots of
songs, from people who make history happen but are usually left out of
history books. A fundraiser for Western Mass. Jobs with Justice - Donation
Requested (but no one will be turned away for lack of funds) - $5 for School
Age, Seniors, Low Income - $10 for Everyone Else (or more if you can afford
it).  $100 Sponsorship includes two admissions. Reserve a seat/sponsorship
in advance: 827-0301 or wmjwj at wmjwj.org or send your tax-deductible donation
and ticket order to WMass Jobs with Justice, PO Box 296, Granby MA 01033.

IMMIGRANT RIGHTS ARE WORKERS' RIGHTS
	May Day and the History of Our Struggle!
	7pm, Campus Center Room 903, UMass Amherst. From the fight for the
eight-hour day to the mass marches demanding legalization for all, immigrant
workers have played a vital role in the US working class movement. Meet with
the International Socialist Organization on the connections between the
fight for Amnesty for all immigrant workers and the emancipation of all
workers from capitalist oppression and exploitation, as ISO celebrates the
hidden history of May Day, the holiday of the international labor movement.
Info: 351-2323, contact at isonoho.org, www.iso.noho.org.

Other Calls to Action on May 1, 2008: 
	May Day visits to local Congressional offices to protest continued
funding of occupation of Iraq: http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/mayday;
http://www.democrats.com/mayday
	The International Longshore & Warehouse Union (ILWU) has called for
a united labor action to demand an immediate end to the war and occupation
in Iraq and Afghanistan and the withdrawal of US troops from the Middle
East. Maybe shutting down West Coast ports on May 1:
http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/?Page=Article&ID=9519.  Some Unions
have called for a symbolic work stoppage of a few minutes to support the
ILWU effort.


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