Today in Labor History October 9, 1936: A lettuce strike had recently ended in Salinas, California. However, when red flags went up throughout town, the authorities feared communist agitators had returned and removed the red flags, only to find out later that they were part of a traffic check being done by the state highway division.

The first effective organizing in the Salinas Valley began in 1933, with the mostly female lettuce trimmers demanding equal pay to the men. The Filipino field workers supported the women’s demands. In 1934, members of the Filipino Labor Union (FLU) struck the lettuce farms. So, the farmers brought in Mexican and Anglo scabs. They used vigilante mobs and the cops to violently attack the strikers and arrested their leaders. When the Filipino Labor Union and the Mexican Labor Union joined forces, a mob of vigilantes burned their labor camp down and drove 800 Filipinos out of the Salinas Valley at gunpoint. The 1934 strike ended soon after, with the growers recognizing the FLU and offering a small raise. This violence inspired John Steinbeck to write “In Dubious Battle” and “Grapes of Wrath,” for which he won both Pulitzer and Nobel Prizes.

#workingclass #LaborHistory #salinas #union #strike #filipino #mexican #racism #communism #police #policebrutality #vigilante #author #books #writer #johnsteinbeck #novel #fiction #novelprize #pulitzer @bookstadon

Today in Labor History October 9, 1936: A lettuce strike had recently ended in Salinas, California. However, when red flags went up throughout town, the authorities feared communist agitators had returned and removed the red flags, only to find out later that they were part of a traffic check being done by the state highway division.

The first effective organizing in the Salinas Valley began in 1933, with the mostly female lettuce trimmers demanding equal pay to the men. The Filipino field workers supported the women’s demands. In 1934, members of the Filipino Labor Union (FLU) struck the lettuce farms. So, the farmers brought in Mexican and Anglo scabs. They used vigilante mobs and the cops to violently attack the strikers and arrested their leaders. When the Filipino Labor Union and the Mexican Labor Union joined forces, a mob of vigilantes burned their labor camp down and drove 800 Filipinos out of the Salinas Valley at gunpoint. The 1934 strike ended soon after, with the growers recognizing the FLU and offering a small raise. This violence inspired John Steinbeck to write “In Dubious Battle” and “Grapes of Wrath,” for which he won both Pulitzer and Nobel Prizes.

#workingclass #LaborHistory #salinas #union #strike #filipino #mexican #racism #communism #police #policebrutality #vigilante #author #books #writer #johnsteinbeck #novel #fiction #novelprize #pulitzer @bookstadon

#theLaundryFiles #book #novel #horror #fantasy

Today in Labor History August 21, 1920: Ongoing violence by coal operators and their paid goons in the southern coalfields of West Virginia led to a three-hour gun battle between striking miners and guards that left six dead. 500 Federal troops were sent in not only to quell the fighting, but to ensure that scabs were able to get to and from the mines. A General Strike was threatened if the troops did not cease their strikebreaking activities. This was just 3 months after the Matewan Massacre, in which the miners drove out the seemingly invincible Baldwin-Felts private police force, with the help of their ally, Sheriff Sid Hatfield. 1 year later, Sheriff Hatfield was gunned down on the steps of the courthouse by surviving members of the Baldwin-Felts Agency. News spread and miners began arming themselves, leading to the Battle of Blair Mountain, the largest armed insurrection since the Civil War and the largest labor uprising in U.S. history. Over 100 people were killed in the 5-day battle, including 3 army soldiers and up to 20 Baldwin-Felts detectives. Nearly 1,000 people were arrested. 1 million rounds were fired. And the government dropped bombs from aircraft on the miners, only the second time in history that the government bombed its own citizens (the first being the pogrom against African American residents of Tulsa, during the so-called Tulsa Riots).

The Battle of Blair Mountain is depicted in Storming Heaven (Denise Giardina, 1987), Blair Mountain (Jonathan Lynn, 2006), and Carla Rising (Topper Sherwood, 2015). And the Matewan Massacre is brilliantly portrayed in John Sayles’s film, “Matewan.”

Read my history of the Battle of Blair Mountain here: https://michaeldunnauthor.com/2024/04/14/the-battle-of-blair-mountain/

#workingclass #LaborHistory #mining #strike #union #westvirginia #matewan#BattleOfBlairMountain #uprising #civilwar#GeneralStrike #tulsa #massacre #racism #books #fiction #film #writer #author #novel @bookstadon

Today in Labor History August 21, 1920: Ongoing violence by coal operators and their paid goons in the southern coalfields of West Virginia led to a three-hour gun battle between striking miners and guards that left six dead. 500 Federal troops were sent in not only to quell the fighting, but to ensure that scabs were able to get to and from the mines. A General Strike was threatened if the troops did not cease their strikebreaking activities. This was just 3 months after the Matewan Massacre, in which the miners drove out the seemingly invincible Baldwin-Felts private police force, with the help of their ally, Sheriff Sid Hatfield. 1 year later, Sheriff Hatfield was gunned down on the steps of the courthouse by surviving members of the Baldwin-Felts Agency. News spread and miners began arming themselves, leading to the Battle of Blair Mountain, the largest armed insurrection since the Civil War and the largest labor uprising in U.S. history. Over 100 people were killed in the 5-day battle, including 3 army soldiers and up to 20 Baldwin-Felts detectives. Nearly 1,000 people were arrested. 1 million rounds were fired. And the government dropped bombs from aircraft on the miners, only the second time in history that the government bombed its own citizens (the first being the pogrom against African American residents of Tulsa, during the so-called Tulsa Riots).

The Battle of Blair Mountain is depicted in Storming Heaven (Denise Giardina, 1987), Blair Mountain (Jonathan Lynn, 2006), and Carla Rising (Topper Sherwood, 2015). And the Matewan Massacre is brilliantly portrayed in John Sayles’s film, “Matewan.”

Read my history of the Battle of Blair Mountain here: https://michaeldunnauthor.com/2024/04/14/the-battle-of-blair-mountain/

#workingclass #LaborHistory #mining #strike #union #westvirginia #matewan#BattleOfBlairMountain #uprising #civilwar#GeneralStrike #tulsa #massacre #racism #books #fiction #film #writer #author #novel @bookstadon

Today in Labor History August 18, 1812: Lady Ludd led the Luddite Corn Market riot of women and boys in Leeds, England. Luddites also rioted in Sheffield against flour and meat sellers. England was suffering huge food shortages and inflation at the time, in part because of the War of 1812, which had started in June, and the ongoing Napoleonic wars. Additionally, new technological innovations were allowing mill owners to replace many of their employees with machines. In response, Luddites would destroy looms and other equipment. To try and get control over these worker protests, the British authorities made illegal oath-taking punishable by death in July 1812. They also empowered magistrates to forcibly enter private homes to search for weapons. And they stationed thousands of troops in areas where rioting and looting had occurred over the summer.

There are numerous parallels between that period and today. Like then, we have new technologies, such as Artificial Intelligence, that could reduce the amount of dangerous and tedious toil for the working-class, giving them higher wages and reduced hours. Instead, the technology is being used by the bosses to cut jobs and further enrich themselves. Like then, we are funding numerous wars and genocides, paid for through austerity that has been imposed on the working-class. And like then, governments are planning and implementing new repressive laws and police powers to undermine working-class protest.

Charlotte Bronte’s second novel, “Shirley” (1849), takes place in Yorkshire, 1811-1812, during the Luddite uprisings. It was originally published under the pseudonym, Currer Bell. The novel opens with a ruthless mill owner waiting for the delivery of new, cost-saving equipment that will allow him to fire many of his workers, but Luddites destroy the equipment before it reaches him. As a result of the novel’s popularity, Shirley became a popular female name. Prior to this, it was mostly a male name.

#workingclass #LaborHistory #luddite #england #inflation #genocide #ukraine #palestine #gaza #hunger #freespeech #fiction #novel #author #writer #books @bookstadon

Today in Labor History August 18, 1812: Lady Ludd led the Luddite Corn Market riot of women and boys in Leeds, England. Luddites also rioted in Sheffield against flour and meat sellers. England was suffering huge food shortages and inflation at the time, in part because of the War of 1812, which had started in June, and the ongoing Napoleonic wars. Additionally, new technological innovations were allowing mill owners to replace many of their employees with machines. In response, Luddites would destroy looms and other equipment. To try and get control over these worker protests, the British authorities made illegal oath-taking punishable by death in July 1812. They also empowered magistrates to forcibly enter private homes to search for weapons. And they stationed thousands of troops in areas where rioting and looting had occurred over the summer.

There are numerous parallels between that period and today. Like then, we have new technologies, such as Artificial Intelligence, that could reduce the amount of dangerous and tedious toil for the working-class, giving them higher wages and reduced hours. Instead, the technology is being used by the bosses to cut jobs and further enrich themselves. Like then, we are funding numerous wars and genocides, paid for through austerity that has been imposed on the working-class. And like then, governments are planning and implementing new repressive laws and police powers to undermine working-class protest.

Charlotte Bronte’s second novel, “Shirley” (1849), takes place in Yorkshire, 1811-1812, during the Luddite uprisings. It was originally published under the pseudonym, Currer Bell. The novel opens with a ruthless mill owner waiting for the delivery of new, cost-saving equipment that will allow him to fire many of his workers, but Luddites destroy the equipment before it reaches him. As a result of the novel’s popularity, Shirley became a popular female name. Prior to this, it was mostly a male name.

#workingclass #LaborHistory #luddite #england #inflation #genocide #ukraine #palestine #gaza #hunger #freespeech #fiction #novel #author #writer #books @bookstadon

Today in Labor History August 16, 1819: Police attacked unemployed workers demonstrating in St. Peter's Field, Manchester, England. When the cavalry charged, at least 18 people died and over 600 were injured. The event became known as the Peterloo Massacre, named for the Battle of Waterloo, where many of the massacre victims had fought just four years earlier. Following the Napoleonic Wars there was an acute economic slump, terrible unemployment and crop failures, all worsened by the Corn Laws, which kept bread prices high. Only 11% of adult males had the vote. Radical reformers tried to mobilize the masses to force the government to back down. The movement was particularly strong in the north-west, where the Manchester Patriotic Union organized the mass rally for Peter’s Field. As soon as the meeting began, local magistrates tried to arrest working class radical, Henry Hunt, and several others. Hunt inspired the Chartist movement, which came shortly after Peterloo.

John Lees, who later died from wounds he received at the massacre, had been present at the Battle of Waterloo. Before his death, he said that he had never been in such danger as at Peterloo: "At Waterloo there was man to man, but there it was downright murder." In the wake of the massacre, the government passed the Six Acts, to suppress any further attempts at radical reform. The event also led indirectly to the founding of the Manchester Guardian newspaper.

Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote about the massacre in his poem, “The Masque of Anarchy.” The authorities censored it until 1832, ten years after his death. Mike Leigh’s 2018 film Peterloo is an excellent portrayal of the massacre, and the events leading up to it. Many writers have written novels about Peterloo, including the relatively recent “Song of Peterloo,” by Carolyn O'Brien, and “All the People,” Jeff Kaye. However, perhaps the most important is Isabella Banks's 1876 novel, “The Manchester Man,” since she was there when it happened and included testimonies from people who were involved.

#workingclass #LaborHistory#peterloo #waterloo #unemployed #poverty #freespeech #massacre #anarchism #novel #poetry#literature #books#poet #author #writer #fiction @bookstadon

Today in Labor History August 16, 1819: Police attacked unemployed workers demonstrating in St. Peter's Field, Manchester, England. When the cavalry charged, at least 18 people died and over 600 were injured. The event became known as the Peterloo Massacre, named for the Battle of Waterloo, where many of the massacre victims had fought just four years earlier. Following the Napoleonic Wars there was an acute economic slump, terrible unemployment and crop failures, all worsened by the Corn Laws, which kept bread prices high. Only 11% of adult males had the vote. Radical reformers tried to mobilize the masses to force the government to back down. The movement was particularly strong in the north-west, where the Manchester Patriotic Union organized the mass rally for Peter’s Field. As soon as the meeting began, local magistrates tried to arrest working class radical, Henry Hunt, and several others. Hunt inspired the Chartist movement, which came shortly after Peterloo.

John Lees, who later died from wounds he received at the massacre, had been present at the Battle of Waterloo. Before his death, he said that he had never been in such danger as at Peterloo: "At Waterloo there was man to man, but there it was downright murder." In the wake of the massacre, the government passed the Six Acts, to suppress any further attempts at radical reform. The event also led indirectly to the founding of the Manchester Guardian newspaper.

Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote about the massacre in his poem, “The Masque of Anarchy.” The authorities censored it until 1832, ten years after his death. Mike Leigh’s 2018 film Peterloo is an excellent portrayal of the massacre, and the events leading up to it. Many writers have written novels about Peterloo, including the relatively recent “Song of Peterloo,” by Carolyn O'Brien, and “All the People,” Jeff Kaye. However, perhaps the most important is Isabella Banks's 1876 novel, “The Manchester Man,” since she was there when it happened and included testimonies from people who were involved.

#workingclass #LaborHistory#peterloo #waterloo #unemployed #poverty #freespeech #massacre #anarchism #novel #poetry#literature #books#poet #author #writer #fiction @bookstadon

All good choices, but one is clearly better than the others 😁

@bookstodon
@scifi @bookbubble @humour @reading

#DouglasAdams
#Book#Books#BookMemes#Memes#Humor#Humour
#Novel#Novels#Bookshelf
#Mastobooks #BooksofMastodon#Bookstodon#Bookworm #Bookwyrm#Bookstodon#BookLove#BoostingIsSharing

All good choices, but one is clearly better than the others 😁

@bookstodon
@scifi @bookbubble @humour @reading

#DouglasAdams
#Book#Books#BookMemes#Memes#Humor#Humour
#Novel#Novels#Bookshelf
#Mastobooks #BooksofMastodon#Bookstodon#Bookworm #Bookwyrm#Bookstodon#BookLove#BoostingIsSharing

Maps are great, but this is greaterest 😊

@bookstodon @fantasybookstodon @speculativefictioncomedy @bookbubble @humour

#FantasyMemes#Fantasy#Memes#Map#Maps
#Low#High#Epic#Science#Comedic#Whatever#GiveMeAllYouveGot
#Book#Books#Novel#Novels
#Mastobooks #BooksofMastodon#Bookstodon#Bookworm #Bookwyrm#Bookstodon#BookLove#BoostingIsSharing

My first novel, How to Surf a Hurricane, is available today! I'm honored to share two years of challenging, stimulating and creative work with you.

The book is a heist, it's true (if you liked Ocean's Eleven, you'll love this).

It's also a well-researched look at what the future might be like in 2040 (if you liked The Martian, you'll enjoy this).

But most importantly, it's a story of hope and action. If you're tired of stories of doom and gloom, that the future will be a hopeless dystopia... if you want to fan the fire inside of you that we can take the future into our own hands... you'll want to read this!

https://howtosurfahurricane.com/

#booktok #solarpunk #crime #novel #book

Maps are great, but this is greaterest 😊

@bookstodon @fantasybookstodon @speculativefictioncomedy @bookbubble @humour

#FantasyMemes#Fantasy#Memes#Map#Maps
#Low#High#Epic#Science#Comedic#Whatever#GiveMeAllYouveGot
#Book#Books#Novel#Novels
#Mastobooks #BooksofMastodon#Bookstodon#Bookworm #Bookwyrm#Bookstodon#BookLove#BoostingIsSharing

Today in Labor History July 31, 1968: Students protested the Olympics in Mexico City. They occupied schools and began a General Strike. Cops violently attacked them. The violence culminated with the Tlatelolco massacre, October 2, during which the cops slaughtered 350-400 people, using snipers. They arrested and tortured over 1,300.

Alejandro Jodorowsky dramatized the massacre in his surreal film, “The Holy Mountain” (1973). In it, he showed birds, fruits, vegetables and other things falling and being ripped out of the wounds of the dying students. The late author, Roberto Bolaño, recounted the massacre in his novel “Amulet” (1999). He also retells the story in his novel, “The Savage Detectives.”

#workingclass #LaborHistory #students #olympics #mexico #protest #massacre #tlatelolco #generalstrike #police #policebrutality #policemurder#robertobolaño #film #author #books #fiction #novel #writer @bookstadon

Today in Labor History July 31, 1968: Students protested the Olympics in Mexico City. They occupied schools and began a General Strike. Cops violently attacked them. The violence culminated with the Tlatelolco massacre, October 2, during which the cops slaughtered 350-400 people, using snipers. They arrested and tortured over 1,300.

Alejandro Jodorowsky dramatized the massacre in his surreal film, “The Holy Mountain” (1973). In it, he showed birds, fruits, vegetables and other things falling and being ripped out of the wounds of the dying students. The late author, Roberto Bolaño, recounted the massacre in his novel “Amulet” (1999). He also retells the story in his novel, “The Savage Detectives.”

#workingclass #LaborHistory #students #olympics #mexico #protest #massacre #tlatelolco #generalstrike #police #policebrutality #policemurder#robertobolaño #film #author #books #fiction #novel #writer @bookstadon

Today in Labor History July 29, 1962: British aristocrat and fascist leader, Oswald Mosely, was beaten by antifascists in London’s east end. Even after police began to escort him away, activists from the antifascist 62 Group (AKA 62 Committee), led by Jewish, communist, and black activists, were able to pelt him with eggs, fruit and rocks. He later called a rally, which the activists successfully disrupted with shouts of “down with fascists.” The only people arrested were antifascist activists.

62 Group disrupted fascist meetings throughout the early to mid-60s, beating up or attacking fascists whenever they had the chance, much like the Jewish antifascist 43 Group did in the 1940s. As a result, they were able to significantly reduce the power and effectiveness of the fascists in the 1960s.

Mosely had been a Labor MP and junior minister from 1918-1931. As the leader of the British Union of Fascists, publicly supported antisemitism and tried to form alliances with Mussolini and Hitler. During the 1936 Battle of Cable Street, antifascist demonstrators including unions, anarchists, socialists, communists, liberals and Jews, prevented the BUF from marching through the East End of London. During World War Two, Moseley and his wife were imprisoned as threats to the national security.

Mosely is portrayed in numerous works of fiction, including the television series, The Peaky Blinders. He is portrayed in Pink Floyd’s the wall; Aldous Huxley’s 1928 novel, Point Counter Point; HG Wells's 1939 novel The Holy Terror; PG Wodehouse's Jeeves series; and Philip Roth's The Plot Against America.

#workingclass #LaborHistory #oswaldmosely #fascism #antifascism #london #antisemitism #anarchism #communism #socialism #racism #books #novel #author #writer #fiction @bookstadon

Today in Labor History July 29, 1962: British aristocrat and fascist leader, Oswald Mosely, was beaten by antifascists in London’s east end. Even after police began to escort him away, activists from the antifascist 62 Group (AKA 62 Committee), led by Jewish, communist, and black activists, were able to pelt him with eggs, fruit and rocks. He later called a rally, which the activists successfully disrupted with shouts of “down with fascists.” The only people arrested were antifascist activists.

62 Group disrupted fascist meetings throughout the early to mid-60s, beating up or attacking fascists whenever they had the chance, much like the Jewish antifascist 43 Group did in the 1940s. As a result, they were able to significantly reduce the power and effectiveness of the fascists in the 1960s.

Mosely had been a Labor MP and junior minister from 1918-1931. As the leader of the British Union of Fascists, publicly supported antisemitism and tried to form alliances with Mussolini and Hitler. During the 1936 Battle of Cable Street, antifascist demonstrators including unions, anarchists, socialists, communists, liberals and Jews, prevented the BUF from marching through the East End of London. During World War Two, Moseley and his wife were imprisoned as threats to the national security.

Mosely is portrayed in numerous works of fiction, including the television series, The Peaky Blinders. He is portrayed in Pink Floyd’s the wall; Aldous Huxley’s 1928 novel, Point Counter Point; HG Wells's 1939 novel The Holy Terror; PG Wodehouse's Jeeves series; and Philip Roth's The Plot Against America.

#workingclass #LaborHistory #oswaldmosely #fascism #antifascism #london #antisemitism #anarchism #communism #socialism #racism #books #novel #author #writer #fiction @bookstadon