【庆五一】五一的由来及其他

dfbb

没出国以前, 一直对五一国际劳动节有个\"错误\"的认识, 五一国际劳动节是全世界劳动人民的节日, 后来到北美以后, \"认识\"到只是共产国际国家的劳动节, 并不是全世界劳动人民的节日, 美国和加拿大是秋天过劳动节.

今天收到了从学校工会发来的, 庆祝五一国际劳动节(May Day)的信, 里面有一篇文章是关于五一国际劳动节的来历, 看了以后大吃一惊. 发现对五一国际劳动节(May Day)的认识还是错误的.

原来, May Day 真的是全世界劳动人民的节日, 只是除了北美的美国和加拿大以外. 其他大部分国家, 欧洲, 非洲, 亚洲, 拉丁美洲都过May Day. May Day的起源严格的讲和共产国际没什么关系. 而是工人的工会有很大的关系.

虽然美国和加拿大不过May Day, 但是May Day的确来源于美国. 来源于美国
1866年五月一日的芝加哥工人大罢工, 也就是从那次罢工, 奠定了现在工人每天工作八小时的权利. 一开始和平的罢工, 最后发生了流血冲突, 一枚炸弹(至今不知道是谁扔的), 扔到维护秩序的警察中, 炸死了一个警察, 炸伤了好几个, 警察随即开枪杀死了好几个示威者. 打伤了好几百人. 然后警察逮捕了八名罢工领导人. 在证据不足的情况下, 判他们四人死刑, 一个在狱中自杀, 另外三人入狱. 直到1893年, 判决被取消, 八个人都被宣布无罪.

从那次罢工以后, May 1st, 被作为全世界工人的节日来庆祝. 但是不知道是有意还是无意避开这段流血的历史, 美国以苏联也采纳五一作为劳动节为理由, 宣布May 1st 为Law Day, 而宣布九月的第一个星期一为Labor Day. 但是May 1st, May Day 还是做为Labor Day在工会中广泛的庆祝.
[ 相约加拿大:枫下论坛 rolia.net/forum ]


From May Day to Labour Day
Wednesday may 1er, 2002,
by: Chad LUBELSKY

On May 1, in Europe, Latin America, Africa and Asia, millions of people will be marching through the streets to celebrate May Day, commemorating the rights that have been gained, demanding what is owed, and defending what multinationals are trying to take away.

Throughout the world, except in North America, May 1 is celebrated as International Worker's Day. In Canada and the United States, we have Labour Day, the first Monday in September, which most people associate with the struggle to accept that summer is over, and not with work, labour or solidarity. Things were not always like this.

Oddly enough, May 1 has its origins in the United States. During the late 19th century, when the effects of the Industrial Revoultion were starting to take hold, workers had few, if any rights. Journalist Michael Thomas notes that the \"political and legal system failed to recognize even the most basic rights of workplace safety, community sanitation and child protection.\" Despite all this, the right to an eight-hour workday, something we have come to recognize as a basic right and a pillar of our workday structure, turned into the rallying call that united workers everywhere. ＜ r o l i a. n e t ＞

On May 1, 1866 the American Labor Federation declared a national strike to demand an eight-hour workday. Hundreds of thousands heeded the call. Over the next several days more and more people joined the strike, culminating in a mass rally in Chicago's Haymarket Square on May 4. Toward the end of the rally, someone (it was never determined who) threw a bomb into the crowd, killing a police officer and injuring others. The police, in turn, opened fire and killed several demonstrators and injured hundreds of others.

Eight labour leaders were eventually brought to trial. Despite a lack of evidence, four were hanged, one committed suicide, and three were given life in jail (in 1893 all eight were pardoned owing to lack of evidence). Since then, these events, and the manner in which workers came together, have become a symbol for the sacrifices that were made in the struggle for better working conditions. May 1, the day of the original demonstrations, is now recognized as an international day of worker solidarity.

Labour Day

The origins of Labour Day as the first Monday in September date roughly back to the same period when the Knights of Labor held a parade on September 5, 1882. While the rest of the world chose to commemorate the events of May 1 as an International Worker's Day, the true origins of May 1 have been all but forgotten in North America, as have any connections between labour and the first Monday in September.

According to professor and union activist Russell Campbell, one possible interpretation is that \"the adoption of May 1st as a holiday by the Soviet Union would have made celebrating it politically dangerous during the strong anticommunist periods of the cold war. Even before the cold war, anticommunist sentiments may have been strong enough so we would not want to be associated with their holiday.\"
{ 枫下论坛 rolia.net/forum }
Morna Ballantyne, National Director of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, (CUPE), notes that even though Labour Day has been depoliticized, over the last twenty years there has been increased awareness about Labour Day and May Day. \"May Day has always been celebrated more widely in Quebec than in the rest of Canada. The labour movement is trying to both politicize Labour Day celebrations, and to reclaim May 1st as a day to celebrate the working class.\"

Beyond the different dates, lie the different philosophies behind them. \"Labour Day is a unifying holiday, May 1st emphasizes the disparity between labour and management... May 1st is observed unilaterally by workers (not by management), while the September holiday is enjoyed by all. The proclamation of Labour Day in the United States can only be interpreted as an effort to isolate the working American from his colleagues around the world, and obscure the history of what management did to labour in Chicago in 1886,\" says Campbell.

Fast Forward to 2002

The situation for workers here in Canada is dire. While economic indicators may be positive, the wealth is not being distributed. Workers' real wages and purchasing power are stagnant even as they are working longer hours. McJobs, part-time and temporary work are skyrocketing (a situation that affects youth and adult women particularly), leaving millions of Canadians with little if any job security or benefits. Meanwhile, health care, public education, and unemployment insurance are being decimated.

For all these reasons and more, on May 1st, there will be marches, strikes, cultural events, and demonstrations throughout the country. \"Celebrating May Day links us with workers around the world. May 1st celebrations are an occasion to remind the world that it is the workers of the world that create wealth and that this wealth belongs to all of us. May Day is a world celebration bringing together workers in a show of strength - it's a day to show that another world is possible,\" says Ballantyne.

Community organiser Alvaro Vargas-Castro is busy preparing events in Montreal. \"May 1st is an opportunity for unions, social movements and ordinary people to come together and speak out against injustice. It's a significant day for anyone who has ever had a job and fought for better working conditions.\" ＜ 相约加拿大 ROLIA.NET ＞

Ultimately, Labour Day is likely to remain as a day for barbecuing and enjoying the last vestiges of summer, with little or no thought given to its roots. Meanwhile, the future of May Day in Canada looks brighter than it has for a long time. With events in every urban centre in the country, May 1 is once again on the landscape. It's up to the workers to make sure it stays there.