1700s-1800s
Today in Labor History June 12, 1798: The United Irishmen fought British forces in the Battle of Ballynahinch during the Irish Rebellion of 1798. The British were pounding the town with cannon fire. Some of the Irish wanted to counterattack at night, when the cannon fire stopped. However, their commander refused, calling it chivalrous. As a result, many rebels deserted. Those that remained, attacked at daybreak. But the British overpowered them and massacred them as they retreated. Hundreds of rebels died. The Presbyterian population that remained become predominantly Unionist and strong supporters of the Orange Order.
Today in Labor History June 12, 1848: The Prague Uprising began. It was part of a wave of European revolutions in 1848. On June 12, Austrian troops fired on peaceful demonstrators. As a result, students, artisans and factory workers rose up and rebelled. They built barricades and fought the troops. But they had no plan, were poorly organized, and were easily crushed by Habsburg troops. The emperor then imposed martial law and dissolved the Prague National Committee.
1900s-1910s
Today in Labor History June 12, 1907: Spanish authorities released Francisco Ferrer y Guàrdia from prison for lack of evidence. They had arrested the anarchist creator of the Modern School for complicity in an assassination attempt against King Alfonso. The bombing had been committed by an anarchist named Morral. He had hid his bomb in a bunch of flowers and tossed it into the royal wedding party. As a result, 15 people died. Another 70 were wounded.
June 12, 1910: The Francisco Ferrer Association was founded in the U.S. Organizers also created a colony in New Jersey and the first U.S. Modern School in New York.
1960s
Today in Labor History June 12, 1963: Byron De La Beckwith, klansman, assassinated NAACP leader Medgar Evers in Jackson, Mississippi. They did not convict the murderer until 1994.
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