Workers are striking and demonstrating across the city today on this International Workers Day.
The DC On Strike Rally and March begins in Lamont Park at noon for a rally followed by a march that will head towards Malcolm X Park, then Freedom Plaza, concluding in Lafayette Park with a rally at 4pm. Meanwhile immigrants and their supporters will gather at Dupont Circle at 2pm to call for an end to the Trump administration mass deportations. They will also march to Lafayette Park for the 4pm rally. Organizers are calling on all DC workers to join the strike, saying "We will not go to work. We will not go to school. We will not shop or engage with financial institutions. This May Day, we will take action! DC needs your voice. DC needs your individual power." Complete details will be kept up to date at dclabor.org, click on calendar. The DC LaborFest launches today with two events: At noon, we'll honor legendary labor organizer Mother Jones with a wreathlaying at the AFL-CIO and then at 7 tonight, "In Dubious Battle" screens at the AFI in Silver Spring. The new film stars James Franco as a fiery union organizer who sets out to organize apple pickers in Central California during the 1930's with his young protege, played by Nat Wolff. Based on the first major work of Pulitzer Prize-winning author John Steinbeck, this rousing tale of workers fighting for a few more dollars a day takes on modern relevance as workers across the country today strike for a living wage. Also starring are Vincent D'Onofrio, Selena Gomez, Robert Duvall and Ed Harris. Here’s today's labor history: On this date in 1830, Mary Harris “Mother” Jones was born in County Cork, Ireland; in 1930, her 100th birthday was celebrated at the Burgess Farm in Adelphi, Maryland and she died six months later. In 1886, eight-hour day demonstrations in Chicago and other cities began the tradition of May Day as an international labor holiday And in 2006, rallies took place in cities across the U.S. for what organizers called “A Day Without Immigrants.” An estimated 100,000 immigrants and sympathizers gathered in San Jose, California, 200,000 in New York, 400,000 each in Chicago and Los Angeles. In all, there were demonstrations in at least 50 cities. Today’s labor quote is by Mother Jones Mary Harris "Mother" Jones, who said: “I have never had a vote, and I have raised hell all over this country. You don't need a vote to raise hell! You need convictions and a voice!”
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