By: Shelly Ruzicka
At first I could not understand why the workers…silently and without a sign of protest bore every insult the caprice of the foreman or boss would heap upon them. I was not aware of the fact that the opportunity to work was a privilege, a favor, and that it was in the power of those who were in the possession of the factories and instruments of labor to deny or grant this privilege. […] I did not know that there were thousands and thousands of idle human bodies in the market, ready to hire out upon most any conditions, actually begging for employment. […] I knew then why … they suffered the humiliating dictates and capricious whims of their employers.
These are not the words of a contemporary privileged middle class college student discovering the reality of today’s working class. These are not the words of a recent immigrant to the United States, discovering that the “American Dream” of a good job to support one’s family is chock full of wage theft and exploitation. No. These are the words of a German immigrant, writing his autobiography from prison 125 years ago. These are the words of Haymarket Martyr August Spies
Many of the speeches of the Haymarket Martyrs have been reprinted and used as rallying cries. Not quite as well-known are the autobiographies of all eight imprisoned men, commissioned by the Knights of Labor weekly labor journal in Chicago while in prison. In reading these autobiographies for the first time, a few passages stood out to me, and when read out of context, appear as words from a contemporary writer.
Since attending May Day events in commemoration of the 125th anniversary of Haymarket, I’ve been reflecting on the differences and similarities between the struggles of the 1880s and today. First, to remember the past.
May Day 2011: One hundred twenty-five years since the strike for the eight-hour day. One hundred twenty-five years after May Day was established following the killing of McCormick workers and the Haymarket rally in response to the police brutality brought upon those workers. One hundred twenty-five years after the arrest and imprisonment of a group of workers & organizers, now referred to as the Haymarket Eight. One hundred twenty-four years after the state’s wrongful execution of four of those men (Albert Parsons, August Spies, Andolph Fischer, and George Engle—as well as Louis Lingg who died in prison either by suicide or murder).
One hundred and twenty-five years. Four generations of lives. A century and a half. So much has changed in that span of time—in our world, in our country, in our city. A city that sparked a national and international movement for workers’ rights. While the context has changed and shifted, our economy has changed and grown, industries have developed and moved around the globe, certain basic concepts and ideals have remained the same. Employer practices have changed, becoming more sophisticated in the strategies utilized to maximize profits and exploit workers. And workers in turn, developed new strategies to organize and fight back (one example—the Worker Center model). But again, while the context is different—we’ve raised the floor, created minimum standards, and won victories for improving the standard of living via collective bargaining and workplace benefits—some things remain the same. The premise hasn’t changed. Workers have to fight tooth and nail to win small improvements and to hold on to already-won benefits. Many struggle to even meet the fairly low standards our state and federal government put in place decades ago. Even though the general environment appears quite different on the surface, there with striking similarities to the past.
While workers today do not face the same level of physical violence as the workers of 125 years ago, they face rhetorical violence that have similar effects. Perhaps one of the greatest examples is the crackdown by the state (via far right wing politicians) on organized public workers (i.e. governors in Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan…). Another example of rhetorical violence against organized workers is the direct verbal threat of con artist Andrew Breitbart who declared that his next targets (to destroy via lies and video editing) are teachers and unions. Public figures like Scott Walker and Andrew Breitbart are using their positions of power or “fame” to put forward policies and messages that are in direct opposition to the interest of the majority of the public.
However, in today’s unstable economy, some are willing to listen to scapegoating preached by those such as Walker and Breitbart. Did we not learn anything from the wrongful state murder of the Haymarket Martyrs? Have we not learned to dig two inches below the surface and ask questions? Why have so many allowed themselves to fall victim to the lies? I won’t get into the discussion of the right-wing media machine. That is for another day. Instead I turn back to August Spies’ observation of workers’ fear in a time of mass joblessness. Why, he asked, would workers put up with horrible conditions? Why, we should ask ourselves do we lay beholden to attacks on workers by corporations and politicians? Some things remain the same. The fear of losing one’s job, especially knowing how many thousands are eagerly awaiting employment—no matter how low-paying or discriminator—is a powerful motivator.
But are all workers so fearful and beholden to their employers and those in power? While it may seem so, I have to report stories that speak to the contrary. A man who worked for his employer for over a decade put up with non-payment of overtime wages and derogatory treatment for years. After learning the tools to confront his employer, the worker did so, demanding his back wages and the right to a safe and non-discriminatory environment, saying it was more important to take a stand than to save his job. The power here is not just in winning wages or even in improving conditions. The power here is in the transformation of all those involved. The worker said “I feel like I can finally breathe. After years of feeling like I was drowning, I can finally breathe.” The employer—for probably the first time in his life—had the tables changed and understood that he no longer had the upper hand in the relationship. But that worker didn’t stop there. That worker is now engaged in building an organization, building a movement of workers to change the tide. Riding on the heels of Wisconsin, this worker is ready to make history. This is one story. It is seemly a small change. But it encompasses the power and the meaning of May Day. Let us all embrace this courage, this vision held by the Haymarket Eight and by countless workers across this country. Onward to a better tomorrow.