2018 May 7
What we once knew as a traditional May Day celebration has tweaked and taken turns throughout the years. The changing of the established date from the 1st of May to the 7th in 2018, to its essence being politicized as well as protests being extended to online platforms, May Day has garnered many revisions both praiseworthy and disgraceful.
So let’s examine, what is May Day meant to be about?
Traditionally it is a spring holiday celebrated by many cultures through dance, singing and other festivities. However, it was chosen as the day for International Workers’ Day in the late 19th century to commemorate what is known as the Haymarket Affair, and thus evolved into the May Day we know now.
The Haymarket Affair was a tragic incident in Chicago when a strike for an eight-hour work day and against police brutality towards workers, followed by public assembly in support of it, translated into a violent event due to an explosion of a bomb, followed by what is largely considered to be an unfair trial resulting in the execution of many who weren’t guilty of throwing the bomb. The Affair resulted in the death and injury of many people and became a popular example of miscarriage of justice.
This history is crucial to note because when countries across the world adopted this holiday, along with it they adopted its premise – that it would be a day dedicated to campaigning for the demands of the working class not only in memory of the victims of the Haymarket Affair but also in light of the present circumstances of their economy and the very people that drive it.
Most countries across the world do this history justice – in Kenya it is a public holiday and celebrated with an address by the leaders of the workers’ umbrella union body and each year, the government approves (and increases) the minimum wage on Labour Day. It is of similar prominence to countries in a post-conflict situation, such as Libya, where International Workers’ Day was declared a national public holiday by the National Transitional Council in 2012, the first year of the post-Qaddafi era, and marked the beginning of hope for workers through economic reforms. The day is used to reassure the working population that their best interests are important to the government. Many places in Europe celebrate May Day festively – in Chile, the major trade unions organize rallies during the morning hours, with festivities and cookouts in the latter part of the day. During these rallies, representatives of the major left-wing political parties speak to the assemblies on the issues of the day concerning workers’ rights.
However, in a lot of places, the traditions of May Day have been known to escalate into violence. The May Day Riots of 1919 in Cleveland left a scar in the history of the annual holiday as marchers refused to back down and mass fighting broke out immediately. We view history repeating itself back in 2018 when more than 100 people remained in custody in Paris after an annual May Day protest turned violent.
What has May Day in Sri Lanka become?
Sri Lanka celebrated its first May Day in 1927, under the leadership of labour leader A. E. Gunasinghe. The first May Day rally had been held in 1933 under his leadership and it’s interesting to observe what it has evolved to become.
In 2012, we observed Occupy Wall Street protest against economic inequality on May Day in the United States and although some argue that this was a form of politicization too, most agree that its premise was in line with that of Labour Day. Is it the same in Sri Lanka?
Unfortunately, it is the opposite. Irrespective of the cause that is being campaigned for, be it legitimate or not, many political parties use this traditional gathering of citizens across the country as a political tool to put forth their agendas and display a largely orchestrated show of support for their cause, exploiting those who support the original premise of the rallies, as well as doing grave injustice to the people the day was meant to be dedicated to.
The politicization of May Day is a devastating form of disrespect, not only to the victims of the Haymarket Affair and others across the world oppressed by employers but mostly it is unjust towards the workers of our country who deserve a day where they are the focus of the political parties, the reigning government as well as in the eyes of the citizenry.
May Day is meant to spread awareness on the plight of workers. Political parties ought to be inclined to propose policies in support of labour, and rallies should be in support of the cause of improving workers’ lives. Instead, it has been corrupted by agendas specific to certain political parties and the voice of the working class has been diluted even more.
