Labor Day

COMMENTARY

The violent and racist fight against laborers’ basic rights in the South

BY: - September 4, 2023

In February 1887, Oregon became the first state to create a Labor Day holiday in recognition of the achievements of workers. Later that year, four more states — Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York — passed laws establishing a Labor Day holiday. Also in 1887, about 10,000 Black sugar plantation workers in Terrebonne, St. […]