May Day was established in the US in 1889 as a commemoration of the Chicago Haymarket Riot, which had taken place 3 years earlier, in May, 1886. The Riot, sometimes called an Affair, was between labor protestors who were campaigning for an 8 hour work day and the police who were trying to intimidate protesters and break up the protest, which ultimately killed one person and injured many more. True to what we now realize is the persistent government censorship on ideas that might be called socialist, President Grover Cleveland decided to make an American Labor day on the opposite end of our calendar – September – when we eat hot dogs, love our country, go back to school, and feel grateful for our oppressive labor overlords.
I had the opportunity to attend the May Day rally at City Hall on Thursday, May 1st. But not just that- I actually RSVP’d as a member of the press (for Artblog, of course!) and was given a badge so that I could sit with other members of the press on a riser, front and center, at the rally. The event, organized by the Philadelphia chapter of the AFL-CIO, was well organized and had a great playlist. Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath blasted as I snuggled in amongst camera bags and microphone wires on the platform. It was unexpectedly hot that day, but vibes were good. People in the crowd held a mix of signs with the names and slogans particular to their representative unions, and others said things about democracy, oligarchy, socialism, people, power, and the bedrock principle that the United States shall have no king. The age range of the attendees skewed slightly older — Where are all the students? As a frequent protest-goer, this is something I keep asking. Perhaps we shouldn’t blame them, since it seems like a visa or an opportunity can be easily snatched away for exercising your first amendment rights these days.
Everybody knew that Bernie Sanders would be at this rally, and I am sure that helped draw a crowd of what was reported to be over 5,000 people.
But here’s a hot take for you:
Bernie Sanders is not an inspiring speaker. I wasn’t moved. My heart didn’t swell. Don’t get me wrong- I was just as excited to see him speak as the next person, but in the end I learned something. Bernie Sanders IS the extremely pragmatic, straight shooter that we know he is. He IS the man with the mittens and his manilla folder, who is ready to get down to business as soon as he can. He is listing facts. History. Statistics. Perhaps I may be a little too tapped in, because none of this was new to me. What’s the plan, Bern? Yes, if we stand together… yes, if we elect progressives… yes, we have to get rid of these interlopers who are taking away our rights. Yes, many Americans aren’t paying attention and don’t know all these things already, but seriously, I’m bored.
When Bernie departed, a fair number of people in the crowd also departed. How disappointing! They missed the grounded, soulful speakers from MILPA. They didn’t hear Phil Glover’s barn-burning speech about the important work that government employees do and all that has been lost to the malice and whims of DOGE. In my notes about AFSCME DC 47, which is the union that represents Philadelphia Cultural Workers through local 397 at the PMA, Please Touch Museum, Schuylkill Center, the Penn Museum, and potentially the Fabric Workshop Museum, I wrote “WHOAAA FIRE FIRE FIRE”.
SEIU 32BJ member Natasha Oglesby wins quote of the day: “Pennsylvania is lagging behind when the constitution is just down the street.” This is an example of what I want to show. The things and the people we have all around us that have become expected and mundane deserve our attention. There are heroes here at home- in politics and also in art (since that’s what you all thought you were coming here to read about, right?). Celebrity status is often overrated. No one actually likes Sean Scully’s work.
If the sweeping cuts to arts and humanities at the federal level haven’t hit home for you yet, they absolutely will. The patronage system is long gone, as is the NEA. It hasn’t not been a struggle to be an artist in my lifetime, and perhaps not in your lifetimes either. Nobody likes to get into politics- its nasty stuff that usually results in arguments during family dinners. But if we have any sense of either self preservation for ourselves as artists, or the preservation of the arts and humanities generally, we have to pay attention. If being a disenchanted voter hasn’t been working, try getting involved. Or at the very least, get informed. As they say, knowing is half the battle! The system has done us dirty, and so we stopped believing in it. I promise you that I don’t believe in the system either, but there is something wrong with me and I just can’t stop trying to make a difference.
The best speaker of the event was actually the first – Reverend Dr. Gregory Edwards, director of POWER Interfaith. I highly encourage you to watch both his speech and the speeches of all the others who spoke during the event. There’s nothing interesting on TV anyway.
The thing that he said that really got me, which I scribbled down in all caps, is “I AM CALLING FOR A MORAL REVOLUTION.”
Me too.
As the kids say, “LFGOOO”!
Read more articles by Katie Dillon Low on Artblog.
