May day is complicated. On the one hand it has its roots in Celtic and Gaelic European Pre-Christian Pagan traditions. On the other hand it is associated closely with Marxist-Leninsm and the industrial labor movement.
In our two part program we explore the origins of Worker’s Day and then we jam-out with a proletariat mix of Industrial music for your dancing pleasure.
Most nations around the world celebrate this holiday officially with little or no association with the Soviet Union. The US is not one of those nations despite that events that lead to it occurred in Chicago.
International Workers’ Day is the commemoration of the 1886 Haymarket Massacre in Chicago, which occurred after an unknown person threw a dynamite bomb at police as they dispersed a public assembly during a general strike for the eight-hour workday.
Haymarket Memorial, Chicago
In an effort to put distance between Communists, Anarchists and the Labor Movement in the USA, our labor holiday was set at September 3rd. To celebrate May 1st in the USA is now an act of defiance against the Upper Classes and the prevailing Christian-based ideology.
Minneapolis May Day Dancer
The May Day festival and Parade in Minneapolis is held on the first Sunday in May. Why not May 1st? So more people will be able to participate taking a Sunday off of work.
These days not everyone works Monday through Friday but Sundays are still the day people take off work in the USA. Surprisingly enough, you don’t see any Christian Fundamentalists protesting the parade screaming through a megaphone that we are all going to hell if we don’t repent now! Plus it’s a hell of a lot of fun and everyone should go! It’s the closet thing to Mardi Gras we have in Minnesota.
Part two of the podcast is a mix of industrial music with a worker’s theme. If you like Industrial Music check it out! If not, thanks for checking out part one!
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Further Exploration:
Haymarket Memorial, Haymarket Massacre, May Day, International Worker’s Day, Minneapolis May Day Parade
