Page 18 - Irish Examiner USA

18 featureexaminer

August Irish Americans And
2019

28th,

largest and most influential
force in the American labor
| movement during its heyday,
EXAMINER and Powderly was given the

“Grand
title
Master
Workman,” which he held
IRISH from 1879 - 1893. and
While he helped organize
unions
for
women
African Americans, Powderly,
like other labor leaders of the
era, opposed the arrival of
Chinese workers because he
believed they took jobs away
from Americans and drove
down wages.
By 1886, the Knights of
Labor reached a membership
of one million, but then began
to wane with the emergence
of the American Federation of
Labor (AFL).

Mother Jones
(1830-1930)
Mary Harris “Mother”
Jones was a courageous and
John Sweeney, the president of the AFL-CIO from 1995 until his retirement in 2009 successful union organizer
By John Mooney immigrants following the lected evidence against the er, Powderly is best remem- who made a tremendous
abor Day is generally Great Hunger settled predom- members of the Mollie bered for leading the Knights impact on the American labor
regarded as the unoffi- inantly in the industrial cities Maguires. of Labor that had a goal of movement.
Lcial end of summer - a of the Northeast. The evidence led to numer- organizing skilled and Born in Cork in 1830, she
day of picnics, barbecues, The men often engaged in ous arrests, and leaders, unskilled workers into one big emigrated to the U.S. at age
and perhaps one last trip to backbreaking jobs, while their including Black Jack Kehoe, union for economic and social five. She later married
the beach. For school-age families lived in crowded ten- were hanged. reform. George Jones, an organizer
children, it usually signifies ements and their children From that point onward The Knights became the for the Knights of Labor.
the end of summer recess worked in sweatshops or even the Molly Maguires
and the commencement of in mines. lost much of their
another school year. The labor movement grew influence.
What is sometime lost in from Irish leaders such as the However, they
the fun is that Labor Day is a Mollie Maguires, Terence succeeded in show-
celebration of the American Vincent Powderly, and Mary ing companies and
worker. In fact, many of the Harris “Mother” Jones. bosses that when
strides made by workers were mistreated, workers
in large part due to the efforts The Mollie Maguires would take matters
of Irish Americans. Irish immigrants often took into their own hands.
Many believe that Peter mining jobs since they met
McGuire, a member of the discrimination in most other Terence Vincent
Brotherhood of Carpenters lines of work. Powderly
and Joiners and a co-founder In addition to enduring (1849-1924)
of the American Federation of poor working conditions, coal Among the most
Labor (AFL), established the miners lived in homes owned noteworthy of all
holiday. by the mining companies and Irish-American labor
However, some historians were even compelled to buy leaders was Terence
credit Matthew Maguire, a groceries at company-owned Vincent Powderly.
machinist and the secretary of stores. Born in Carbondale,
the Central Labor Union in The Mollie Maguires first Pennsylvania, to
New York, for proposing the came to prominence in 1850s. Irish immigrant par-
holiday on Tuesday, They intimidated, physically ents, he began work-
September 5, 1882. Two harmed, and sometimes killed ing on the railroad at
years later, Labor Day was mine owners and bosses the age of 13.
changed to the first Monday whom they felt exploited He joined several
in September, where it has workers. unions, including the
remained ever since. To combat the violence, Machinists’ and
the mine owners hired the Blacksmiths, for
Irish Americans And The Pinkerton Detective Agency, which he later served
Labor Movement which infiltrated the Irish as president.
The great influx of Irish mining community and col- A Fenian support-