Pullman Strike (1894)
Fri May 11, 1894
On this day in 1894, the Pullman Strike, a national railroad strike led by Eugene V. Debs, began, leading to Debs' arrest, 30 strikers' killed, $80 million of property damage, and the creation of the American version of Labor Day.
The strike pitted the American Railway Union (ARU) against the Pullman Company, the main railroads, and the United States government under President Grover Cleveland.
The conflict began in Pullman, Chicago when nearly 4,000 factory employees of the Pullman Company began a wildcat strike in response to recent reductions in wages. After a federal injunction to stop the strike was ignored, 12,000 troops were sent in to forcibly break the strike. All in all, 30 strikers were killed, 57 were wounded, and property damage exceeded $80 million.
The Pullman Strike was a watershed moment in American labor history - Eugene V. Debs, who led the strike, was arrested and imprisoned, radicalizing his politics and setting him on the path to become a prominent socialist leader and co-founder of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW).
After the strike was over, President Cleveland declared the national holiday "Labor Day" in an effort to appease organized labor.
- Date: 1894-05-11
- Learn More: en.wikipedia.org, www.britannica.com.
- Tags: #Labor, #IWW.
- Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org