Today is Labor Day, of which I did not know the origin until consulting Wikipedia, which reports:
“Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September (September 6 in 2010).
The first Labor Day in the United States was celebrated on September 5, 1882 in New York City.[1] In the aftermath of the deaths of a number of workers at the hands ofthe U.S. military and U.S. Marshals during the 1894 Pullman Strike, President Grover Cleveland put reconciliation with Labor as a top political priority. Fearing further conflict, legislation making Labor Day a national holiday was rushed through Congress unanimously and signed into law a mere six days after the end of the strike.[2]Cleveland was also concerned that aligning an American labor holiday with existing international May Day celebrations would stir up negative emotions linked to theHaymarket Affair.[3] By the 20th century, all 50 U.S. states have made Labor Day a state holiday.”
Who knew? Not me, that’s for sure. In any case, I hope you have a wonderful day of labor, rest or a parade (See picture of the first Labor Day parade).
Rev. Andrew Conard 