WEBVTT

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How's this for a strange idea:

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a day off from work in honor of work itself?

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Actually, that is what Labor Day,

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celebrated in the United States and Canada

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on the first Monday of every September,

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is all about.

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The first American Labor Day

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was celebrated in New York City

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on September 5th, 1882,

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as thousands of workers and their families

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came to Union Square for a day in the park.

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It was not a national holiday

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but had been organized by a union

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to honor workers and their hard efforts

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with a rare day of rest,

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halfway between July 4th and Thanksgiving.

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There were picnics and a parade,

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but there were also protests.

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The workers had gathered,

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not just to rest and celebrate,

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but to demand fair wages,

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the end of child labor,

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and the right to organize into unions.

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During the period known as

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The Industrial Revolution,

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many jobs were difficult, dirty and dangerous.

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People worked for twelve hours,

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six days a week,

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without fringe benefits,

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such as vacations, health care and pensions,

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and if you were young, chances are

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you were doing manual labor

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instead of your ABCs and fractions.

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Children as young as ten

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worked in some of the most hazardous places,

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like coal mines or factories filled with boiling vats

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or dangerous machines.

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Trying to win better pay, shorter hours

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and safer conditions

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workers had begun to form labor unions

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in America and Canada,

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but the companies they worked for

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often fought hard to keep unions out

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and to supress strikes.

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At times, this led to violent battles

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between workers and business owners

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with the owners often backed up by the police,

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or even the military.

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In the following years,

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the idea of Labor Day caught on in America

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with official celebrations reaching 30 states.

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But then came the violent

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Haymarket Square Riot of 1886,

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which led to the deaths of several policemen

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and workers in Chicago

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and the execution of four union leaders.

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After that, many labor and political groups

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around the world

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had begun to mark Haymarket Square on May 1st,

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which became known as

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International Workers' Day.

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In 1894, President Grover Cleveland

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signed the law making Labor Day a

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federal holiday in America,

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only days after he had sent

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12,000 soldiers to end

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a violent railroad strike

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that resulted in the death of several people.

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The original September date was kept,

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partly to avoid the more radical associations of May 1st.

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Canada also created its Labor Day in 1894.

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But, in spite of this new holiday,

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it would be a long time before the changes

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that workers wanted

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became a reality.

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In 1938, during the Great Depression

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that left millions without jobs,

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President Franklin D. Roosevelt

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signed a law calling for an eight-hour work day,

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a five-day work week,

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and an end to child labor,

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some of the first federal protections for American workers.

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As America and Canada celebrate Labor Day,

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most of the two countries' children enjoy

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a day off from school.

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But it is important to remember

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that there was a time that

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everyday was a labor day for children in America and Canada,

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and unfortunately,

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the same fact remains true

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for millions of children around the world today.