Labor Day

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Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September. The holiday originated in 1882 from a desire by the Central Labor Union to create "a day off for the working man". Parades and pro-union demonstrations were central to the holiday at least through the time of World War I.

Today, Labor Day is celebrated by most Americans as the symbolic end of the summer (which symbolically begins on Memorial Day). Congress made Labor Day a federal holiday in 1894.^[1] All fifty states have also made it a state holiday.

Canada and Bermuda also observe their own 'Labour' Day holidays on the first Monday in September.

[edit] Culture

Labor Day has been celebrated on the first Monday in September in the United States since the 1880s. The form that the observance and celebration of Labor Day should take were outlined in the first proposal of the holiday — a street parade to exhibit to the public "the strength and esprit de corps of the trade and labor organizations" of the community, followed by a festival for the recreation and amusement of the workers and their families. This became the pattern for the celebrations of Labor Day. Speeches by prominent men and women were introduced later, as more emphasis was placed upon the economic and civil significance of the holiday. Still later, by a resolution of the American Federation of Labor convention of 1909, the Sunday preceding Labor Day was adopted as Labor Sunday and dedicated to the spiritual and educational aspects of the labor movement.

Today Labor Day is often regarded simply as a day of rest and, compared to the May 1 Labour Day celebrations in most countries, parades, speeches or political demonstrations are more low-key, although especially in election years, events held by labor organizations often feature political themes and appearances by candidates for office. Forms of celebration include picnics, barbecues, fireworks displays, water sports, and public art events. Families with school-age children take it as the last chance to travel before the end of summer. Some teenagers and young adults view it as the last weekend for parties before returning to school. However, of late, schools have begun well before Labor Day, as early as the 24th of July in many urban districts, including Nashville and Atlanta. In addition, Labor Day marks the beginning of the season for the National Football League and NCAA College Football. The NCAA usually plays their first games the weekend of Labor day, with the NFL playing their first game the Thursday following Labor Day.

[edit] Controversies

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The Knights of Labor organized the original parade on Tuesday, September 5, 1882 in New York City. In 1884 another parade was held, and the Knights passed resolutions to make this an annual event. Other labor organizations (and there were many), but notably the affiliates of the International Workingmen's Association, many of whom were socialists or anarchists, favored a May 1 holiday. In 1886 came the general strike which eventually won the eight-hour workday in the United States. These events are today commemorated as Labor Day in virtually every country in the world, with the notable exceptions being the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. With the Chicago Haymarket riots in early May of 1886, President Grover Cleveland believed that commemorating Labor Day on May 1 could become an opportunity to commemorate the riots. Thus, fearing that it might strengthen the socialist movement, he quickly moved in 1887 to support the position of the Knights of Labor and their date for Labor Day.

[edit] Labor Day traditions

Since 1966, the annual telethon of the Muscular Dystrophy Association has been held on Labor Day weekend. The telethon, hosted by Jerry Lewis, raises tens of millions of dollars each year to fund research and patient support programs for the various diseases grouped as muscular dystrophy.

Labor Day weekend also marked the annual running of the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina. The race was run at any time during the weekend from 1950-2002. In 2004, NASCAR began racing on Labor Day weekend at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California.

Chicago's Taste of Polonia, the city's largest Polish themed festival celebration of Polish cultural heritage, traditions, and customs on the grounds of the Copernicus Foundation in Jefferson Park. Bringing in crowds well over 30,000 each year, Taste of Polonia has welcomed notable guests such as President George H. Bush in 1992 and Vice-President Dick Cheney, Mrs. Tipper Gore, and Mrs. Hadassah Lieberman in 2000^[2].

Boomsday, one of the biggest fireworks displays in the Southeastern United States, has been held annually on Labor Day since 1986 in Knoxville, Tennessee; it attracts over 350,000 spectators.

Popular fashion etiquette dictates that white should not be worn after Labor Day.^[3] Originally it was white shoes that were taboo— white or "winter white" clothing was acceptable.^[4] The custom is fading: "Fashion magazines are jumping on this growing trend, calling people who 'dare' to wear white after Labor Day innovative, creative, and bold. Slowly but surely, white is beginning to break free from its box, and is becoming acceptable to wear whenever one pleases. This etiquette is comparable to the Canadian fashion rule against wearing green after Remembrance Day. In the world of western attire, it is similarly tradition to wear a straw cowboy hat until Labor Day. After Labor Day, the felt hat is worn until Memorial Day."^[5]

[edit] References