Tuesday, June 27, 2023

Today in Labor History June 27, 2023

Emma Goldman

Emma Goldman, women’s rights activist and radical, was born in Lithuania. She came to the US at age 17. – 1869

The Bureau of Labor, which will become the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), was established. Today, the BLS is a governmental agency that collects, processes, analyzes, and disseminates statistical data on employment, labor, and economics. – 1884

The Industrial Workers of the World, also known as the “Wobblies,” the radical syndicalist union, was founded at Brand’s Hall, in Chicago, Illinois. The Wobblies advocated for industrial unionism, with all workers in a particular industry organized in the same union, as opposed by the trade unions typical today. The Wobblies motto was, “An injury to one is an injury to all.” – 1905

Congress passed the Wagner Act, authored by Senator Robert Wagner of New York. Also known as the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), the legislation created the structure for collective bargaining in the United States. – 1935

A 26-day strike of New York City hotels by 26,000 workers, the first such walkout in 50 years, ended with a five-year contract calling for big wage and benefit gains. – 1985

A.E. Staley locked out 763 workers in Decatur, Illinois. The lockout lasted two and one-half years. – 1993

In a 5-4 decision, a conservative Supreme Court of the United States ruled in Janus V AFSCME that fair share payments by public employees violate the First Amendment of the Constitution, Free Speech. This decision allows people who disagree with paying fair share payments to the union can become freeloaders and get all the benefits of the union. – 2018

Monday, June 26, 2023

Monday Night in the Blogosphere

Reporting on poverty and food insecurity - Editor & Publisher

'Don't force the readers to make assumptions' - Journalism UK

The importance of editors in the age of (highly unreliable) AI - What's New in Publishing

Top 25 US newspaper circulations: Largest print titles fall 14% in year to March 2023 - Press Gazette

Local news publishers consider whether and how to embrace community reporting - Editor & Publisher

Important Events From This day in History June 26th

1963 JFK Visits Germany

1963 : President John F. Kennedy expresses solidarity with democratic German citizens in a speech in front of the Berlin Wall that separated Berlin into west Berlin and East Berlin, he declared to the crowd, “Ich bin ein Berliner” or “I am also a citizen of Berlin.”

1948 Germany Soviet Blockade

1948 : In response to the Soviet blockade of land routes into West Berlin, the United States begins a massive airlift of food, water, and medicine to the citizens of West Berlin supplies from British and American planes sustained the over 2 million people in West Berlin for close to 12 months.

1906 France French Grand Prix

1906 : The first French Grand Prix the first race of it's kind to be held anywhere was staged in Le Mans, This was the forerunner to the current Grand Prix raced throughout the world today.

1930 US Brotherhood Bank Closes

1930 : A Sudden run on the Brotherhood local bank in Ohio forces bank to close, this is happening all over the country as more are taking money out of their local bank due to concerns and is the 8th bank in the State of Ohio in the last 2 weeks to close it's doors.

1933 U.S.A. "The Kraft Music Hall"

1933 : "The Kraft Music Hall" debuted on NBC radio. The ever-popular radio show ran for 16 years and featured some of the most popular entertainment names of its day.

1945 United Nations Charter

1945 : Delegates from 50 nations sign the United Nations Charter, establishing the world body as a means of helping to stop another World War happening.

1956 National Interstate and Defense Highways Act

1956 : Congress passes the National Interstate and Defense Highways Act for the construction of 41,000 miles of Interstate Highways over a 20-year period, it was the largest public works project in American history to that point, The federal government paid 90% of the construction costs and States paid for 10%.

1959 U.S.A. St. Lawrence Seaway

1959 : The St. Lawrence Seaway has it's official opening when the Royal Yacht Britannia with The Queen representing Canada and US President Dwight D Eisenhower from the United States formally open The St. Lawrence Seaway, creating a navigational channel from the Atlantic Ocean to all the Great Lakes. The seaway, made up of a system of canals, locks, and dredged waterways, extends a distance of nearly 2,500 miles, from the Atlantic Ocean through the Gulf of St. Lawrence to Duluth, Minnesota, on Lake Superior.

1960 Cuba/US Imports End

1960 : Congress is planning to cut the amount of sugar imported from Cuba and in retaliation Castro has stated Cuba will seize US assets , meanwhile in Cuba campaigns of sabotage against the Castro Regime continue to grow with attacks on the rail system.

https://www.thepeoplehistory.com/june27th.html

Today in Labor History June 26, 2023

Armed soldiers pose with locomotive during the Pullman Strike

The American Railway Union launched a boycott of all trains carrying Pullman cars, turning the Pullman strike into a national strike which was eventually crushed by federal troops and by lack of support from the more conservative American Federation of Labor. Strike leader Eugene V. Debs was imprisoned and many workers were blacklisted for their involvement. – 1894

The Bisbee, Arizona IWW (Industrial Workers of the World) miner strike occurred on this date. On July 12, 1,300 strikers, their supporters, and innocent bystanders were illegally deported from Bisbee by 2,000 vigilantes. They traveled over 200 miles in cattle cars, without food or water for 16 hours. – 1917

The St. Lawrence Seaway officially opened. The joint project between the US and Canada employed 22,000 workers to build the 2,342-mile waterway system linking the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes. – 1959

Sunday, June 25, 2023

Jose Diaz Rest in Peace

Former Pressmen from the Los Angeles Times, (left) Jose Diaz, Victor Flores, Jerry Razo, and Tony Ramirez. Photo credit: Albaro Albanes

I received the sad news that former press operator, Jose Diaz, passed away last week, Mr. Diaz was a hard working individual, and well liked by his colleagues at the newspaper.

Condolences to his family and friends.

Mass Production Process of Making Newspapers

Sunday Morning in the Blogosphere

How to future-proof your newsroom with AI - Journalism UK

Why news subscriptions feel like a burden to young people - Nieman Lab

Congress, before tackling AI, save local journalism - America's Newspapers

Another unsurprising setback for Wall Street Journal reporter jailed in Russia - Poynter

Great Newspapers and the Problem of Underspending Billionaires - Second Rough Draft

Important Events From This day in History June 25th

1876 U.S.A. Custers Last Stand

1876 : Custer's Last Stand during the Battle of the Little Bighorn. Six hundred men of The U.S. Seventh Cavalry led by George Armstrong Custer, were attacked by 3,000 native American Indians consisting mostly of Sioux and Cheyenne led by Crazy Horse, within one hour of the attack every last one of the soldiers were dead.

1938 U.S.A. Swastika

1938 : Problems with Native American Indian businesses using the Swastika which is an Indian symbol of good luck and predates the modern world including the use of the swastika buy the Nazi Party in Germany is causing those Indian businesses to stop displaying the sign due to people believing it stands for the Nazis.

1928 U.S.A. Jewish National Home

1928 : The Jewish community in the United States has pledged to raise $3,000,000 each year for the next 5 years to rebuild Palestine as a Jewish National Home.

1943 World War II Dwight D. Eisenhower

1943 : Major General Dwight D. Eisenhower takes command as Supreme Allied Commander in Europe. After proving himself on the battlefields of North Africa and Italy in 1942 and 1943, Eisenhower was appointed supreme commander of Operation Overlord in 1944 the Allied invasion of northwestern Europe.

1948 Germany West Berlin Blockade

1948 : Following the Russian blockade of West Berlin stopping fuel, electricity and food US Soldiers are patrolling the streets in armored cars with mounted machine guns. In retaliation to the blockade the US and UK have stopped all exports to East Berlin and the USSR.

1950 North Korea Attack South Korea

1950 : Armed forces from communist North Korea smash into South Korea, setting off the Korean War which lasted until 1953. The US becomes involved as part of the United Nations effort to help South Korea repel the invasion from the North and pushes back to North Korea beyond 38th parallel into North Korean territory and following US involvement China become involved on behalf of North Korea

1951 U.S.A. Color Television

1951 : The first commercial color television show was transmitted by the Columbia Broadcasting System CBS . While color television sets were generally not available it was estimated that about 40,000 people saw the first color program.

1956 U.S.A. Packard

1956 : The last 1956 Packard was produced, marking the end of production at Packard's Connor Avenue plant in Detroit, Michigan. Packard would continue to manufacture cars in South Bend, Indiana, until 1958, but for those familiar with Packard the last 1956 is considered the last true Packard car.

1957 U.S.A. Packard

1957 : Hurricane Audrey hits Gulf Coast which kills 390 people. Water on the coast reached as high as 15 feet above the normal high-tide mark. Boats were washed ashore by the tremendous waves. The towns of Cameron, Creole and Grand Chenier were devastated by the hurricane. Only one building survived in Creole and only two were left standing in Cameron.

1967 UK Beatles "All You Need Is Love"

1967 : The Beatles record "All You Need Is Love" in front of an international television audience on "Our World", the first live global television link. Broadcast to 26 countries and watched by an estimated 350 million people. The BBC had commissioned the Beatles to write a song for the UK's contribution to the program containing a simple message to be understood by all nationalities.

1993 Canada Kim Campbell

1993 : Kim Campbell is sworn in as Canada's 19th prime minister, becoming the first woman to hold the country's highest office.

1996 Saudi Arabia US Base Attacked

1996 : A truck loaded with high explosives is detonated at a U.S. military housing complex killing 19 Americans and injuring hundreds more.

https://www.thepeoplehistory.com/june26th.html

Today in Labor History June 25, 2023

Aerlex Corp fireworks factory – Day after explosion

21 workers were killed when the Aerlex Corp fireworks factory near Hallett, Oklahoma exploded. – 1985

Decatur, Illinois police pepper-gassed workers at the A.E. Staley plant gate one year into the company’s two and one-half year lockout of Paperworkers Local 7837. – 1994

The Haymarket Martyrs Monument was dedicated at Forest Home Cemetery, Chicago to honor the 8 anarchists who were framed and executed for the bombing at Haymarket Square on May 4, 1886. More than 8,000 people attended. At the base of the monument are Haymarket martyr August Spies’ last words: “The day will come when our silence will be more powerful than the voices you are throttling today.” – 1893

The Wages and Hours (later Fair Labor Standards) Act was passed, which banned child labor, set the 40-hour work week and set a national minimum wage. – 1938

A. Philip Randolph (president Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters) called off the Negro march on Washington that had been planned for July 1 when President Roosevelt agreed to issue Executive Order 8802 banning racial discrimination in defense industries and government employment (creating the Fair Employment Practices Committee). – 1941

Congress passed the Smith-Connally War Labor Disputes Act over President Franklin Roosevelt’s veto. It allowed the federal government to seize and operate industries threatened by strikes that would interfere with war production. It was hurriedly created after the third coal strike in seven weeks. – 1943

Friday, June 23, 2023

Important Events From This day in History June 23rd

1989 U.S.A. Batman Movie

1989 : The movie Batman opened in theaters, starring Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson.

1931 U.S.A. Round The World Record

1931 : Wiley Post and his navigator, Harold Gatty, took off for a round the world flight in the single-engine airplane, the "Winnie Mae." from Roosevelt Field, New York. they arrived back at Roosevelt Field on July 1st, completing the trip with a record time of eight days, 15 hours and 51 minutes.

1940 France Hitler Tour Paris

1940 : After the German occupation of Paris Adolf Hitler takes a tour of the major notable sites in the French capital.

1941 U.S.A. "St. Louis Blues"

1941 : Lena Horne recorded "St. Louis Blues." Her career spans several decades, even into the 1980s when she made a guest appearance on the popular TV hit "The Cosby Show."

1944 U.S.A. Tornadoes

1944 : A series of tornadoes across West Virginia and Pennsylvania kill more than 150 people most of the twisters were classified as F3, but the most deadly one was an F4 on the Fujita scale.

1956 Egypt Nasser

1956 : Following the army coup led by Gamal Abdel Nasser that deposed the regime of King Farouk Gamal Abdel Nasser is elected president of Egypt when he stands as the sole candidate.

1956 Algeria Rebel Attacks

1956 : A series of rebel attacks in Algeria are targeting Europeans with French members of the community targeted mostly, in the last 7 days 23 have been killed and over 150 injured mostly in shooting attacks by small commando groups.

1961 Antarctica The Antarctic Treaty System

1961 : The Antarctic Treaty System comes into force to regulate international relations with respect to Antarctica, "all land and ice shelves south of 60°S latitude parallel". Antarctica is the Earth's only continent without a native human population. The Antarctic Treaty consists of a number of articles agree by the 12 original signatories Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Chile, France, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, the USSR, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The treaty includes the following important rules.

1. Research be used for peaceful purposes only.

2. Military activity, such as weapons testing, is prohibited.

3. Free exchange of information and personnel.

4. The Antarctic Treaty does not recognize, dispute, or establish territorial sovereignty claims.

5. Prohibits nuclear explosions or disposal of radioactive wastes.

https://www.thepeoplehistory.com/june24th.html

Today in Labor History June 23, 2023

Bill Haywood - Charles Moyer - George Pettibone

June 2, 1929, labor leader and president of the Western Federation of Miners (1902-1926) Charles “Charlie” Moyer dies. Moyer led the union during the Colorado Labor Wars and was accused in the assassination of the ex-governor of Idaho. Concerned with the “radicalism” of the IWW, Moyer took the union out and affiliated with the more conservative AFL in 1911. [Photo (L-R): Charles Moyer, Bill Haywood, and George Pettibone, all accused in the death of Frank Steunenberg, 1907.

Charles Moyer, president of the Western Federation of Miners, went to Butte, Montana in an attempt to mediate a conflict between factions of the miner’s local there. It didn’t go well. Gunfight in the union hall killed one man. Moyer and other union officers left the building, which was then leveled in a dynamite blast. – 1914

The anti-worker Taft-Hartley Act was passed, overriding President Harry Truman’s veto. The act rolled back many of the labor protections created by the 1935 Wagner Act. Taft-Hartley weakened unions in numerous ways, including the banning of the general strike. It also allowed states to exempt themselves from union requirements. Twenty states immediately enacted anti-union open shop laws. – 1947

OSHA issued standards on cotton dust to protect 600,000 workers from byssinosis, also known as “brown lung”. – 1978

The newly-formed Jobs With Justice group staged its first big support action, backing 3,000 picketing Eastern Airlines mechanics at Miami Airport. – 1987

After a 25-year-long struggle, textile workers at six Fieldcrest Cannon plants in North Carolina voted for union representation by the Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees (UNITE). The combined facilities made up the biggest textile mill in the country, employing more than 5,000 workers and theirs was the largest union victory in a Southern textile mill in US history. – 1999

Tuesday, June 20, 2023

Tuesday Night in the Blogosphere

Inside the Los Angeles Times layoffs - Poynter

Gannett files federal lawsuit against Google - Gannett

How to include displaced journalists in the newsroom - Journalism UK

If Cable News is Dying, Here Are Four Reasons Why - second Rough Draft

America’s Newspapers releases 2023 Local Newspaper Study - America's Newspapers

Important Events From This day in History June 20th

1975 U.S.A. Jaws

1975 : The summer blockbuster movie "Jaws" is released about a great white shark attacking swimmers at Amity Island, a fictional summer resort town.

1893 U.S.A. Lizzie Borden

1893 : In the case of the murder of her father Andrew Jackson Borden, and her stepmother, Abby Borden despite incriminating circumstances but with no murder weapon found and no blood evidence found. A jury in New Bedford, Mass., found Lizzie Borden innocent of the ax murders of her father and stepmother. The case was is best remembered by the popular jump-rope rhyme: Lizzie Borden took an axe And gave her mother forty whacks. And when she saw what she had done She gave her father forty-one.

1923 U.S.A. Rum Smugglers

1923 : A large fleet of Seaplanes are to be mobilized in an attempt to catch rum smugglers off the Atlantic Coast, it is believed these will be more successful than current means of catching the rum runners who are equipped with very fast boats that are outrunning federal agents.

1929 U.S.A. Rum Smugglers

1929 : Exchanges of gunfire on the Detroit river between rum runners and federal agents ended with federal agents using machine guns to sink the smugglers vessel, French boats are anchored off the coast outside of US jurisdiction and the rum runners are going between shore and the ships anchored off shore carrying cases of rum.

1937 U.S.A. "Pirates of Penzance"

1937 : W2XBS (later WCBS-TV) televised the first TV operetta. The work was the "Pirates of Penzance" by Gilbert and Sullivan. The operetta became the duo's most popular creation and is still parodied in cartoons and other pop culture references today.

1947 U.S.A. Mob Killing

1947 : Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel is murdered at the Beverly Hills, Calif., mansion of his girlfriend, Virginia Hill, at the order of mob associates angered over the soaring costs of Siegel’s pet project, the Flamingo resort now costing in the region of $6,000,000 in Las Vegas, Nev. In the 1972 movie the Godfather the character of Moe Greene is heavily based on Siegel.

1956 Plane Crash

1956 : Venezuelan airliner plunges into Atlantic.

1963 Hot Line Established Between US and Soviet Union

1963 : To lessen the threat of an accidental nuclear war, the United States and the Soviet Union agree to establish a "hot line" communication system between the two nations.

1967 U.S.A. Muhammad Ali

1967 : After appearing for his scheduled induction into the U.S. Armed Forces on April 28th, 1967 in Houston, he refused three times to step forward at the call of his name. On 20th June Muhammad Ali is convicted in Houston of violating Selective Service laws by refusing to be drafted. The decision is later overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court.

1976 Lebanon Evacuation over Continued Fighting

1976 : As the fighting continues to escalate in Beirut and with westerners now facing increasing danger after the murder of the American ambassador Francis Meloy. Westerners are being evacuated by the US military and taken to safety in Syria.

https://www.thepeoplehistory.com/june21st.html

Today in Labor History June 20, 2023

Eugene V. Debs

Eugene Debs formed the American Railway Union (ARU), one of the earliest unions to organize by industry and regardless of race or ethnicity (see Knights of Labor and IWW). Within a few months, the union was leading an 18-day strike against the Great Northern Railroad, successfully forcing management to reverse three wage cuts despite the fact that the nation was in the midst of a terrible depression. The victory set the union on a remarkable course in which it averaged 2,000 new members a day. – 1893

Police shot 14 Wobblies (members of the Industrial Workers of the World) during a labor clash in Butte, Montana. In April, company guards at the Anaconda mine fired on striking Wobblies, killing one. Vigilantes or company goons lynched IWW organizer Frank Little in Butte in 1917. – 1920

A newspaper strike halted publication of The Butte Miner, the Anaconda Standard, and the Butte Daily Post until July 4. – 1927

Henry Ford recognized the United Auto Workers and signed the first-ever contract for workers at the River Rouge plant. – 1941

Striking African-American auto workers were attacked by the KKK, National Workers League, and armed white workers at Belle Isle amusement park in Detroit. Two days of riots followed, 34 people were killed and more than 1,300 arrested. – 1943

The Taft-Hartley Labor Management Relations Act that curbed strikes was vetoed by President Harry S Truman. The veto was overridden three days later by a Republican-controlled Congress. – 1947

Oil began traveling through the Alaska pipeline. Seventy thousand people worked on building the pipeline, history’s largest privately-financed construction project. – 1977

Evelyn Dubrow, described by the New York Times as organized labor’s most prominent lobbyist at the time of its greatest power, died at age 95. The International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union lobbyist once told the Times that “she trudged so many miles around Capitol Hill that she wore out 24 pairs of her size 4 shoes each year.” She retired at age 86. – 2006

Monday, June 19, 2023

Important Events From This day in History June 19th

1846 U.S.A. First official Game of Baseball

1846 : The first official game played under New York Knickerbockers Baseball Club rules was in 1846 in Hoboken, New Jersey, between the Knickerbockers and the New York Base Ball Club. History of Baseball.

1905 U.S.A. Nickelodeon

1905 : The world's first nickelodeon opened showing a silent film called The Great Train Robbery the name nickelodeon was used as it cost 5 cents or a nickel to watch the movie or live vaudeville acts.

1910 U.S.A. Fathers Day

1910 : The First Father's Day was celebrated for the first time in Spokane, Washington.

1917 UK Royal Family

1917 : During the first World War as sentiment against Germany by the British People worsened King George V ordered the British royal family to end using the German-sounding surname, Saxe-Coburg-Gotha and to take on the name Royal House of Windsor.

1923 Italy Mount Etna

1923 : Walls of lava one mile wide are descending Mount Etna towards the town of Lingauglossa in Italy, the lava is travelling slowly giving time for evacuation of the area, another flow of Lava over 50ft high and a mile wide is heading for the town of Giarre with a population of 17,000 the town will be doomed as the lava will cover all buildings in the town.

2002 Australia Solo Round The World Balloon Flight

2002 : Steve Fossett sets off in his 10-story high balloon Spirit of Freedom from Northam, Western Australia on his fifth attempt at flying a balloon solo around the world.

1938 U.S.A. Train Crash

1938 : A flood in Custer Creek in Terry, Montana washes out a bridge over the Custer Creek river used by trains and when the Olympian Special came through, it crashes into the raging waters with the loss of 46 lives.

1953 U.S.A. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg

1953 : Following the conviction for spying on behalf of the Soviet Union and passing U.S. atomic secrets to the Soviet Union. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg are executed at Sing Sing Prison. Spying by both sides in the Fifties was a part of the Cold War.

1968 U.S.A. The Poor Peoples March

1968 : 50,000 people participated in " The Poor Peoples March " organised by Martin Luther King Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference to address issues of economic justice. The campaign culminated on Washington, D.C. to demand economic aid be given to the poorest communities in the United States. Unlike many of Martin Luther King Jr's campaigns The Poor People’s Campaign did not focus on just poor blacks but addressed all poor people of every minority.

1970 UK Edward Heath New Prime Minister

1970 : The conservative party led by Edward Heath wins in the general election. The win was considered unusual because all the opinion polls held in the few days prior to the General Election had predicted an easy win for the Labour party led by Harold Wilson.

1975 UK Lord Lucan

1975 : An inquest jury decides that missing Earl Lord Lucan is found guilty of the murder of the 29-year-old nanny of his three young children. Lord Lucan has not been seen since the night the nanny Sandra Rivett died on 7 November 1974. Lord Lucan was never found and was officially declared dead in October 1999.

1978 U.S.A. Garfield

1978 : First Garfield comic strip appears 41 American newspapers.

1980 Iraq British Embassy Attacked

1980 : An attack on the British embassy by attackers, armed with automatic weapons and grenades, ends when three of the attackers are shot dead by Iraqi security forces. No British embassy staff were injured during the attack.

1999 Great Britain Prince Edward Marries

1999 : Prince Edward married commoner Sophie Rhys-Jones at St. George's Chapel, Windsor. Following the wedding they take the titles of His Royal Highness The Earl of Wessex and Her Royal Highness The Countess of Wessex. Prince Edward is seventh in the line of succession to the British Throne.

2000 Great Britain Illegal Immigrants

2000 : The bodies of 58 Chinese illegal immigrants have been found in the back of a Dutch-registered lorry at the English port of Dover during a routine search of the lorry. The illegal trafficking of immigrants has been increasing through British Ports as immigration rules are tightened.

https://www.thepeoplehistory.com/june20th.html

Today in Labor History June 19th

Slaves were declared free in Texas, a date now celebrated each year as the holiday “Juneteenth.” – 1865

The kangaroo trial of eight anarchists for the Haymarket bombing began in Chicago on this date. – 1886

Silk workers struck in Paterson, New Jersey. The event escalated into a riot. Silk workers had struck several times in the 19th century and again in 1913, led by the IWW. – 1902

An eight-hour workday was adopted for federal employees. – 1912

AFL President Samuel Gompers and Secretary of War Newton Baker signed an agreement establishing a three-member board of adjustment to control wages, hours and working conditions for construction workers employed on government projects. The agreement protected union wage and hour standards for the duration of World War I. – 1917

The first important sit-down strike in American history was conducted by workers at a General Tire Company factory in Akron, Ohio. The United Rubber Workers union was founded a year later. – 1934

The Women’s Day Massacre: during the Great Ohio Steel Strike of 1937, there were numerous street battles between workers and police, including the Youngstown Riots and Poland Avenue Riot on June 21st. On June 19th, there were smaller battles that some believe were initiated by the cops to test the likely extent of union resistance in a real fight. When the cops in Youngstown couldn’t find any union leaders to beat up, they went after women picketers who were sitting in chairs to support the strike. One union organizer later recalled, “When I got there I thought the Great War had started over again. Gas was flying all over the place and shots flying and flares going up and it was the first time I had ever seen anything like it in my life…” – 1937

The ILWU organized a four-day strike of sugar, pineapple, and allied workers to protest convictions under the anti-communist Smith Act of seven activists, “the Hawai’i Seven.” The convictions were later overturned by a federal appeals court. – 1953

Wednesday, June 14, 2023

Important Events From This day in History June 14th

1954 U.S.A. Cold War Civil Defense Drill

1954 : As the continuing Cold War jitters hit America in the Fifties a large scale nationwide civil defense drill is held where the simulation of over 12 million Americans die in a mock nuclear attack. The event stood as a stark reminder that the United States and the world was now living under a nuclear shadow. This in turn did help to get the leaders of the worlds 2 largest nuclear powers to work together to stop the spread of nuclear proliferation and eventually to agree to dismantle many nuclear weapons . At that time many believed that any nuclear war would end in both countries being destroyed with no winner only losers.

1929 U.S.A. Population 120 Million

1929 : The population in the US continues to grow at a rate of 1.4 million a year with current census estimates predicting 120,000,000 next year.

1939 U.S.A.transatlantic commercial service

1939 : A second transatlantic commercial service is planned using the latest in flying boats.

1939 U.S.A. Electricity Prices Decreasing

1939 : As the use of electricity increases the cost has come down an example below:

In 1921 the cost to light a 100 watt lamp for two hours was 1 1/2 cents

In 1939 the cost to light a 100 watt lamp for two hours was 3/4 cent

1940 German Tanks Arrive In Paris

1940 : German tanks rolled into Paris and took control of the city and the German Gestapo went to work with arrests and interrogations as a gigantic swastika flew beneath the Arc de Triomphe.

1942 Holland Anne Frank Diary

1942 : Anne Frank began her diary after she receives it for her 13th birthday, the diary details her life in hiding from the Nazis in hidden rooms in her father Otto Frank's office building and has become one of the world's most widely read books. She died while held in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp of typhus in March 1945.

1943 U.S.A. Salute The Flag

1943 : In the case of West Virginia Board of Education v. Barnette, the United States Supreme Court decided that schoolchildren cannot be forced to give a salute to the United States flag.

1954 U.S.A. Pledge of Allegiance

1954 : President Eisenhower signed a bill to add the words "under God" to the United States Pledge of Allegiance.

1961 UK Zebra Crossings

1961 : Following increasing numbers of accidents at uncontrolled zebra crossings a new type of road crossing with push button controls which will allow pedestrians to stop traffic with flashing lights is to be introduced next year.

1967 U.S.A. Mariner 5 Spacecraft

1967 : The Mariner 5 spacecraft raced a heavier Soviet probe toward Venus to penetrate with electronic fingers the planet's mysterious veil of clouds and help scientists see if Venus is a fit place to live, In the end the glory did go the Soviet Probe which did reach Venus 1 day ahead of Mariner 5.

1972 U.S.A. Pilots Organize Worldwide Strike

1972 : Following a series of plane hijackings The International Federation of Air Line Pilots Associations (IFALPA) has called a 24-hour stoppage for June 19th and accused governments of failing to take action to halt air piracy.

1973 U.S.A. Dr. Benjamin Spock

1973 : Dr. Benjamin Spock (famous author of The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care) and three others, including Yale University Chaplain William Sloane Coffin, Jr., are convicted of conspiring to aid, abet, and counsel draft registrants to violate the Selective Service Act.

1977 U.S.A. 65% Non Smoking Seats

1977 : Non-Smokers win court battle with Eastern Airlines which required Eastern to have at least 65% non smoking seats, this was a landmark case in many ways and the forerunner to smoking being banned on all flights.

https://www.thepeoplehistory.com/june15th.html

Today in Labor History June 14th, 2023

UNIVAC I

UNIVAC I, the first commercial computer, was installed at the U.S. Census Bureau. – 1951

In West Virginia, which was under martial law due to ongoing violence between miners and thugs hired by the mining companies, state police and vigilantes raided the Lick Creek tent colony. 47 strikers were arrested. Within a few months, much of Southwestern West Virginia would be engaged in the largest civil uprising in US history, as 10,000-15,000 coal miners battled cops and scabs. – 1921

In San Pedro, California, the Ku Klux Klan attacked members of the Industrial Workers of the World at the IWW’s meeting hall during a benefit for the families of two workers killed in a railroad accident. The KKK beat many of the 300 members. They kidnapped, tarred, and feathered others scalded two children by burning them

Saturday, June 10, 2023

Saturday Morning in the Blogosphere

Warsaw, Indiana, printing plant to close, putting about 525 workers out of jobs - wlfi

Prison agency rescinds censorship policy after New York Focus reporting - New York Focus

Los Angeles Times executes largest layoffs under billionaire Soon-Shiong's ownership - Poynter

The Star Tribune is offering grads across Minnesota free one-year digital subscriptions - Nieman Lab

A Colorado reporter explains ‘off the record’ to a source — and to readers - Inside the News in Colorado

Important Events From This day in History June 10th

US Naval Dirigible

1921 : The US Naval Dirigible made a forced landing on a San Diego high School Campus after the under work collapsed under the Air Ship and narrowly missed the school flagpole.

1940 Norway Surrenders To Germany

1940 : Two months after starting the invasion of Norway Germany gains full control when Norway surrenders . One other interesting fact is that the word Quisling came from the name of the Norwegian minister of defense Vidkun Quisling.

1940 Italy Declares War on France and Great Britain

1940 : Italy declares war on France and Great Britain.

1947 Sweden SAAB First Car Produced

1947 : Saab a supplier of military aircraft before and during World War II produces their first car in attempt to diversify the model 92 prototype.

1961 USA President Kennedy

1961 : After injuries sustained while on a trip to Canada President Kennedy back injury is improving although he is still using crutches to get around.

1967 Middle East Six Day War Ends

1967 : Israel and Syria agree to observe the UN mediated cease-fire ending six days of Israeli fighting against Egypt, Jordan and Syrian forces.

1977 USA James Earl Ray

1977 : James Earl Ray, the convicted assassin of civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., escaped from a maximum security prison in Tennessee, he was recaptured three days later.

1978 USA Affirmed Wins Triple Crown

1978 : Affirmed wins the Belmont Stakes and the Triple Crown, one year after Seattle Slew wins it in 1977.

1980 South Africa Nelson Mandela

1980 : Nelson Mandela the imprisoned leader of the African National Congress (ANC) makes public a statement from a letter written by Nelson Mandela and smuggled out of prison "UNITE! MOBILISE! FIGHT ON! BETWEEN THE ANVIL OF UNITED MASS ACTION AND THE HAMMER OF THE ARMED STRUGGLE WE SHALL CRUSH APARTHEID!"

1986 South Africa Civil Unrest

1986 : The Civil unrest continues in South Africa in Shanty Towns with Young Black protesters attacked by self styled conservative militia armed with guns , clubs and Knives, The Militia are attacking hospitals and schools and burning them to the ground with a number of deaths and casualties reported.

1986 UK Brighton Bombing Grand Hotel

1986 : Patrick Joseph Magee is convicted of planting the bomb at the Grand Hotel in Brighton during the 1984 Conservative Party conference which killed five people and nearly wiped out most of Margaret Thatcher's cabinet on October 12th 1984.

1996 Iraq Biological Weapons

1996 : UN Experts and Iraq Officials have started dismantling a Biological Weapons Factory outside of Baghdad as called for by sanctions imposed by the UN following Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990.

2000 UK Millennium Bridge

2000 : The new Millennium Bridge connecting St Paul's Cathedral to the Tate Modern gallery on the South Bank across the Thames is closed after it begins swaying violently in the wind under the weight of hundreds of pedestrians on opening day.

2002 USA Dirty Bomb

2002 : Attorney General John Ashcroft announces that José Padilla a.k.a. Abdulla al-Muhajir was arrested in Chicago on May 8th, 2002, on suspicion that he was an Al-Qaeda terrorist planning to detonate a dirty bomb in the U.S. A dirty bomb is a radiological dispersal device (RDD), which combines radioactive material with conventional explosives. The effects are not the same as a nuclear bomb Nuclear bomb is a weapon of mass destruction compared with. Dirty bomb is a weapon of mass disruption. A dirty bomb may not be hugely destructive in physical terms, it would have a huge psychological effect.

2007 Australia Man Made Fires For Climate Control

2007 : After many years of problems for both the indigenous people (Aborigines) of Australia and an increase of major bush fires wiping out large tracts of land and sometimes affecting major cities, Australia has embraced the Aborigines ancient traditions of indigenous fire management by burning areas of the Australian Outback to act as wild fire breaks just after the rains to stop wild fires spreading uncontrollable later in the year. The project has been made possible by the most unlikely of companies ConocoPhillips who have agreed to pay the Aborigines A$1m ($850,000) a year, for 17 years, to offset 100,000 tons of the refinery's own greenhouse emissions. The half a million Aborigines in Australia have long suffered from huge social problems in dysfunctional communities ravaged by domestic violence and alcoholism as the governments plans to assimilate them into the mainstream have largely failed, but schemes like this may well provide the opportunity for them to provide a service they understand better than anybody else and helping in the fight against global warming.

2008 USA Storms In Midwest Taking a Toll

2008 : After 7 days of violent storms in the Midwest starting on June 3rd a number of US states are now suffering serious flooding due to rivers bursting their banks, and reservoirs overflowing. The states worst affected are : Iowa with Iowa City under severe flood warnings. Illinois where levees have failed causing thousands of acres of farmland to be flooded causing concerns over this years crops which were already predicted to be lower than normal. Indiana where the White River has breached in a number of places. Wisconsin where rivers have reached flood level and in areas of Milwaukee main roads are now closed. Five states have now declared a state of emergency in one or more counties and concerns over further storms scheduled for later in the week could bring even more flooding.

2008 Greek Industrialist Captured

2008 : One of Greece's top aluminum industrialists was kidnapped by gunmen. George Mylonas was taken from his home in Thessaloniki. Police began searching for him immediately and set up roadblocks along the northern border of the country. The motive for the abduction was unclear.

https://www.thepeoplehistory.com/june13th.html