May XNUMXst, National Labor Day. But have you ever wondered how this party was born? What were the historical facts that contributed to the choice of a day that celebrated the right to work for all? May Day is really the result of many events that took place in different countries, in fact it is an anniversary that many peoples are keen to celebrate. The demands for the defense of rights in the world of work begin to take shape at the congress of the International Association of Workers. From the First International, gathered in Geneva in September 1866, the proposal starts: "Eight hours as a legal limit of working activity".
On May XNUMXst, the workers' protest
The motto was born in Australia as early as 1855 "Eight hours of work, eight of leisure, eight to sleep". A slogan that becomes the 'manifesto' for the workers' protests demanding fairer working conditions. Already at that time May XNUMXst was chosen by the workers as a date to meet and claim justice. From one end of the planet to the other, the struggles continue.
On May 1886, XNUMX, a general strike took place in the United States to reduce the working day to eight hours. The protest lasts three days and unfortunately culminates with the Haymarket Square massacre in Chicago. A stranger throws a bomb killing seven policemen and four civilians. The massacre of the 'Chicago martyrs' thus becomes the symbol of the claims of the American workers.
Labor day
From the States to Europe, to the Old Continent. In July 1889 in Paris, the founding congress of the Second International, decides that “a large demonstration would be organized for a set date. This, so that simultaneously in all towns and cities, workers would have asked the public authorities to reduce the working day to eight hours by law ”.
In fact, in Paris, on May 1890, XNUMX, the first international event dedicated to work and the protection of workers was held. Participation is massive. Since then, May XNUMXst becomes a national holiday in many countries except the United States. The US, in fact, celebrates the Labor Day (Labor Day) which is celebrated on the first Monday of September.
Portella della Ginestra, the Italian May Day massacre
In Italy, the Labor Day, set for May 1891st, came into force in 1924. In the Fascist era, between 1944 and 21 the celebration day was moved to April XNUMXst to coincide with the Birth of Rome. In fact, the new definition is assigned to it: Birth of Rome, Labor Day. In 1947, the anniversary is set again for May XNUMXst and, in that very year, it takes place the Portella della Ginestra massacre in Sicily. In the rural area of the municipality of Piana degli Albanesi in Palermo, about two thousand people representing the peasant world meet to celebrate the end of the dictatorship and the return to freedom.
The bandit Salvatore Giuliano with the gang of associates who supports him fires on the demonstrators, killing 11 people and wounding at least another fifty. According to the then Minister of the Interior, Mario Scelba, who reports on what happened to the Constituent Assembly, the massacre is not a political crime. However in 1949 the bandit Giuliano sent a letter to the newspapers and the police to claim the political purpose of the massacre. On July 14, 1950 Giuliano is assassinated by his lieutenant, Gaspare Pisciotta. The latter, in turn, was poisoned in prison on February 9, 1954 after having made sensational revelations about the massacre. Today Italy continues to celebrate May XNUMXst every year: a celebration of democracy, rights and freedom.
