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May Day Celebrations: International Workers' Day

Jeanne Benedict
Celebrations Expert

International Workers' Day is certainly less flouncy than the seasonal May Day celebrations but perhaps more significant in modern times. This sociopolitical May Day observance is marked with public demonstrations by workers' unions and similar groups in many countries around the world.
International Workers' Day commemorates the Haymarket Massacre in Chicago in 1886, when local police shot and killed several workers who were demonstrating during a strike for the 8-hour work day. Police were also killed in the line of fire.
Shortly after the massacre, May Day assemblies were held throughout the world and much rioting occurred. For this reason, President Cleaveland dubbed the first Monday in September as the United States' Labor Day in hopes of preventing future riots and to keep the holiday as a true recognition of the countries' working men and women.

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