1880s-1910s
Today in Labor History September 2, 1885: 150 white miners, who were struggling to unionize for better wages and work conditions, attacked their Chinese fellow workers in the Rock Springs massacre in Wyoming. As a result, they killed 28 Chinese miners, wounded 15 others and forced all the other Chinese to flee town. By the time the federal troops arrived, there were no surviving Chinese people left in town.
Today in Labor History September 2, 1917: On orders of Attorney General Palmer, the authorities mass-arrested members of the IWW.
Battle of Blair Mountain
Today in Labor History September 2, 1921: The Battle of Blair Mountain ended on this date in 1921, with the U.S. government bombing striking coal miners by plane, the second time the U.S. government used planes to bomb its own citizens (the first was in the Tulsa riots, earlier that year). The Battle of Blair Mountain was one of the largest civil uprisings in U.S. history. It was also the largest armed insurrection since the Civil War. The uprising lasted 5 days and involved 10,000-15,000 coal miners confronting an army of scabs and police.
Roots of the Battle
The battle came as mine owners tried to crush attempts by coal miners to unionize the southwestern West Virginia coalfields. From the late 1800s, mine owners forced workers to live in company towns. They deducted rent from the men’s wages. And they paid them in scrip, which the miners could only use at the overpriced company stores. Scrip was worthless everywhere else. The work was very dangerous and safety equipment and precautions were minimal. The mine owners had a long tradition of using private detectives and goons to spy on workers, infiltrate their meetings, rough them up, and block any attempts to unionize.
The battle began after Sheriff Sid Hatfield was assassinated by Baldwin-Felts agents. Hatfield an ally of the miners and hero from the Battle of Matewan. Much of the region was still under martial law as a result of the Battle of Matewan. Miners began to leave the mountains armed and ready for battle. Mother Jones tried to dissuade them from marching into Logan and Mingo Counties, fearing a bloodbath. Many accused her of losing her nerve. The miners ignored her and a battle ensued between miners and cops, private detectives, scabs and eventually the U.S. military.
1930s-1940s
Today in Labor History September 2, 1936: The Macbeth Mine exploded killing 10 workers at the Hutchinson Coal Company mine in Logan County, West Virginia. Six months later it exploded again, on March 11, killing 18 more.
Today in Labor History September 2, 1945: Communist leader Ho Chi Minh proclaimed the Democratic Republic of Vietnam after the end of the Nguyễn dynasty. France promptly went in and tried to retake control in the First Indochina War. Failing to suppress the communists, the U.S. took over. As a result nearly 60,000 U.S. soldiers died along with hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese.
1950s-1960s
Today in Labor History September 2, 1956: National Guardsmen were dispatched to Clinton, Tennessee after a series of violent demonstrations made it impossible to carry out desegregation.
Today in Labor History September 2, 1963: Alabama governor George C. Wallace blocked the integration of Tuskegee High School in Huntsville, Alabama, by encircling the building with state troopers. Eight days later, President John F. Kennedy federalized the Alabama National Guard, forcing Wallace to abandon his efforts to block the desegregation.
1970s-1990s
Today in Labor History September 2, 1974: The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) was enacted, setting minimum standards for most private-sector pension and health plans.
Today in Labor History September 2, 1991: 25 workers were killed by a fire at the nonunion Imperial Foods poultry processing plant in Hamlet, North Carolina. Bosses had locked the doors in violation of the law, leaving the workers no escape.