Episodes
Friday Mar 11, 2016
March 11, 2016 Are you a Luddite?
Friday Mar 11, 2016
Friday Mar 11, 2016
At some point in your life you may have had someone call you a “luddite.’ Maybe you had a hard time programming your DVR, or working the latest app on your smart phone. But at some point technology gets the best of us all. But did you know the term luddite has its roots in labor history?
Thursday Mar 10, 2016
March 10, 2016 Sharing in the Pain of Struggle
Thursday Mar 10, 2016
Thursday Mar 10, 2016
On this day in Labor History the year was 1968. That was the day that farm labor activist Cesar Chavez broke a twenty-five day fast. He fasted as a sign of commitment to nonviolence during the struggle for farm workers in Delano, California to gain fair wages and safe working conditions. During the fast he only drank water.
Wednesday Mar 09, 2016
March 9, 2016 The Slovak Strike of 1910-11
Wednesday Mar 09, 2016
Wednesday Mar 09, 2016
On this day in Labor History the year was 1911. That was the day that coal miners in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania walked out of the mines. It became known as the “Slovak strike” because seventy percent of the strikers were Slovakian immigrants. Unrest was mounting among the workers in the non-unionized coal fields.
Tuesday Mar 08, 2016
March 8, 2016 Another Tragedy in the Mines
Tuesday Mar 08, 2016
Tuesday Mar 08, 2016
On this day in Labor History the year was 1924. That was the day that tragedy struck at the Utah Fuel Company Mine in Castle Gate, Utah. The mine stood about 90 miles southeast of Salt Lake City. Coal mining began at Castle Gate in 1888.
Monday Mar 07, 2016
March 7, 2016 The Loss of a True Champion
Monday Mar 07, 2016
Monday Mar 07, 2016
On this day in Labor History the year was 1942. That was the day a house fire claimed the life of a true champion for working people.
Lucy Gonzales Parsons was born in Texas.
Sunday Mar 06, 2016
March 6, 2016 Why a Sane SCOTUS Matters
Sunday Mar 06, 2016
Sunday Mar 06, 2016
On this day in Labor History the year was 1857. That was the day the Supreme Court handed down one of its most infamous decisions. It was known as the Dred Scott case. Dred Scott had been born into slavery.
Saturday Mar 05, 2016
March 5, 2016 The Worker Uprising that Started the American Revolution
Saturday Mar 05, 2016
Saturday Mar 05, 2016
On this day in Labor History the year was 1770. That was the day of the Boston Massacre, when the first shots of the American Revolution were fired. But did you know that the massacre happened in part because of a dispute over jobs? In 1767 the British had passed the Townshend Revenue Act.
Friday Mar 04, 2016
March 4, 2016 A Fighter Wins for Workers
Friday Mar 04, 2016
Friday Mar 04, 2016
On this day in Labor History the year was 1914. That was the day that President Woodrow Wilson signed the Seaman’s Act into law. The act was in part a response to the tragic sinking of the Titanic.The International Seamen’s Union was demanding changes to the work conditions at sea.
Thursday Mar 03, 2016
March 3, 2016 Birth of William Green
Thursday Mar 03, 2016
Thursday Mar 03, 2016
On this day in Labor History the year was 1893. That was the day that William Green, long-time president of the American Federation was born in Coshocton, Ohio. Green’s family were English and Welsh immigrant coal miners.
Wednesday Mar 02, 2016
March 2, 2016 Thomas Jefferson signs Law Outlawing Slave Trade
Wednesday Mar 02, 2016
Wednesday Mar 02, 2016
On this day in Labor History the year was 1807. That was the day that President Thomas Jefferson signed legislation outlawing the trans-Atlantic slave trade from bringing enslaved Africans to the United States. At the drafting of the U.S. Constitution, the authors had decided to revisit the question of slavery after two decades.