kchinery's blog

Thirty years ago, Poland captured the world’s attention when the workers of the Lenin Shipyard in Gdańsk went on strike and launched a national rebellion. Solidarność, the free trade union born during the strike, developed into a social movement that established a democratic government in Poland and eventually led to the end of the Cold War in Eastern Europe. The Reuther Library’s latest exhibit, "Solidarność: Poland’s Struggle for Freedom, 1980-1990," provides an historical account of Solidarność from the events leading up to the first strike in 1980 through the 1989 election in Poland.  read more »

Few cities are more closely tied to the labor movement than Detroit. From the beginning, Labor Day in Detroit was about worker demonstration, which took the form of a parade. The city's first Labor Day celebration was held on August 16, 1884 in Recreation Park, where 50,000 spectators turned out for the celebration. Here is the earliest Labor Day Parade image from the Reuther's collection, showing Randolph Street in downtown Detroit circa 1890s.  read more »