#harry himself has a history of horrific police brutality

[palms-upturned]

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#meg talks #KSZGSJDH sorry this one is petty but #baffles me when ppl say the rcm is not quite as bad as irl cops like… #i feel like that’s not the intended takeaway at all #didn’t elysium start out as a ttrpg about precinct 41 where they played the cops as comically corrupt and horrible as possible? 😭 #harry himself has a history of horrific police brutality #kim talks abt how officers are corrupt and take bribes and are hostile to misconduct investigations to protect their own #even (and especially) in the context of using deadly force #not to mention how the hardie boys/union have basically become cops in everything but name #and the claires are massively corrupt #like the only real difference is the rcm’s lack of funding and its origins #but even re: the post-revolution origins… kim admits that it’s EXTREMELY ambiguous #whether the rcm was started to protect the citizens of revachol from the coalition as an assertion of independence #or whether it was really a hollow gesture to placate the citizens and the rcm has really served the coalition the whole time #and if u say u believe that the rcm is the revolutionaries’ legacy even kim will be like lol. well you can be sentimental if u want #and either way the fact remains that NOW they’re just another arm of the coalition regardless of how they started #like… i dunno man. i feel like the game makes the point p clearly that a cop is a cop #even a labor union can become a police force bc it’s about the act of policing more than anything #and even with what kim says about how rcm officers have to be men of many hats #and include things like social work in their jobs… i mean… #social workers and psychiatry are already part of the carceral police state irl 💀 that’s not all that different #and also like can u imagine KIM handling social work? let alone any of the other assholes at 41? 😭 #the rcm’s station call system may be better as well than what we have irl but like. u know. reform vs abolition etc #idk man. i just can’t get behind the idea that the rcm being better than irl police forces by the slimmest of margins #and more due to lack of resources than principles #means much of anything 💀 a cop is a cop #anyway. watever…

[cscclibrary]

[Photocollage with pale yellow-green background and 12 inset squares.  Three dark blue squares have one pale blue word in each: “Happy Labor Day!” The other squares contain b/w photos of prominent United States labor activists. From top left: Bayard Rustin, Lucy Parsons, Eugene Debs, Peter McGuire, Lucy Randolph Mason, Cesar Chavez, Mother Jones, Rosina Tucker, and Sidney Hillman.]

Labor Day is often a day for outdoor gatherings with friends and family, a symbolic close to the summer, but this federal holiday has a solemn history that goes back to the late 19th century, to the birth of the labor movement in the United States. It’s impossible to overestimate the effect that labor unions and activists have had on American history, particularly in the improvement of conditions for workers; it would be foolish to underestimate the courage and determination with which they faced armed and violent opposition from large business owners and even police.

What better time to read up on some of the events and influential figures (both well- and lesser-known) in the U.S. labor movement? These brief articles (mostly from databases provided by the Columbus State Library, but a few from reputable websites) are a quick and accessible entry point into one of the most exciting and influential parts of U.S. history.  [Please note: Columbus State Library’s electronic resources are available to our current students and staff only.]

Events:

The Haymarket Affair: In Chicago, on May 4th, 1886, a rally was held by labor activists to protest police and private security brutality towards striking laborers the day before. The May 4th rally was without incident, with even the Mayor himself, who observed the proceedings, informing the local police precinct that it was peaceful. But when 180 policemen suddenly stormed the rally, a chain of events unfolded that had repercussions not only for the labor movement, but for the American justice system. Additional read: a primary source from 1886, “Anarchist Oscar Neebe's Commentary on the Haymarket Affair.”

The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire: In 1911, a clothing sweatshop that occupied the top three floors of a ten-story building caught fire. The factory, which was full of workers, had poor fire safety measures despite demands of the workers’ union only two years before. Although some escaped, a total of 146 workers--mostly young women and girls of immigrant origin--had perished in flames, or in leaping to escape the fire. A number of important health and safety laws were passed in the fire’s aftermath, aimed at preventing another such horrific loss of life. Additional read: a primary source from 1911, the New York Times’ article covering the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire.

The West Virginia Mine Wars: Coal miners in the early 20th century often worked in appalling conditions.  Attempts to unionize were brutally suppressed by mine owners, in conjunction with police and private security guards/strikebreakers.  In 1912 and 1921, West Virginia coal miners took arms against these forces in an attempt to secure better pay and safer working conditions. Additional reads: The Devil is Here in These Hills: West Virginia’s Coal Miners and their Battle for Freedom [via OhioLINK] Guns, Thugs, Rednecks, and Radicals: A Documentary History of the West Virginia Mine Wars [via OhioLINK] Revolts, Protests, Demonstrations, and Rebellions in American History: An Encyclopedia [ebook]: See the chapter regarding the Battle of Blair Mountain, the largest labor insurrection in American history.

Notable Figures: 

César Chávez: Migrant workers’ rights activist.

Eugene Debs: Prominent labor activist and founding member of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW).

Sidney Hillman: Union leader and founding member of the CIO.

Mary Harris “Mother” Jones: Activist and orator who devoted fifty years to fighting for labor rights.

Lucy Randolph Mason: Southern labor and civil rights activist.

Peter McGuire: Labor activist, organizer, and (possibly) the “Father” of Labor Day.

Lucy Parsons: Activist, independent newspaper publisher, and founding member of the IWW.

Bayard Rustin: In addition to his civil rights work, Rustin was also a prominent advocate for economic and labor justice.

Rosina Tucker: Labor and civil rights activist; organizer with the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, the first Black trade union in the U.S.

#labor day #labor unions #united states #resource list #columbus state community college #history