Book of Days

It is Labor Day. For some, an unofficial closing of summer. More importantly, though, Labor Day celebrates the American worker and the accomplishments of labor throughout our history. It is the day we recognize that our accomplishments as a nation are collective and cooperative. We each do our share and when we do, great things happen.

The Central Labor Union organized the very first Labor Day celebration on the Fifth of September, 1882. It was a Tuesday, and organizers were more than a little concerned about turn out: Would workers show up if it meant losing a day’s pay? At the start of the parade, in Lower Manhattan, the answer seemed to be “no.” Just a few people showed. But as the parade progressed through the city, more and more workers joined in, mostly union members. By the time the parade concluded, more than 10,000 workers were marching, and plans were set in motion for a second Labor Day celebration a year later. Twelve years after that first organized parade, Labor Day was a national holiday. Congress set its date as the First Monday of September.

Here’s a confession: I don’t believe much in the myth of the Self Made Man. I know, I am always encouraging my readers to suspend disbelief. But I am too much of a realist to believe in this. The way I see it, we build on what others have already built. My success is built on the foundations that were laid by my parents, by my grandparents, by all the people who have come before me. My success is dependent on the others I work with, dependent on each contributing their share. In a country whose overriding narrative tends to focus on the great I, Labor Day celebrates what is possible when we work cooperatively together. Labor Day is about us all.

Image: Members of the Women’s Auxiliary Typographical Union in the annual Labor Day parade, New York, 1909. Courtesy United States Department of Labor.