This Labor Day, VII has put together a group project consisting of an essay by Shana Russell with photo stories from VII’s Sara Terry, Ed Kashi, Danny Wilcox Frazier, Maggie Steber, John Stanmeyer, and Christopher Lee and Nolan Ryan Trowe of the VII Mentor Program, about automation, domestic workers, bicycle messengers, the shuttering of factories, and more.
The origin story of Labor Day begins in 1882 with a one-day strike among American workers in New York City. They marched, 10,000 strong, while carrying signs and the tools of their trades in the name of unity. The strike ended with a picnic and celebration. A time and place where workers could gather and build community without anyone looking over their shoulders.
Once Labor Day became official, celebration, in the absence of resistance, became the center. In New York, one might have seen parades with costumes. In Atlanta, a brass band. In Los Angeles, a picnic on the beach, followed by dancing and fireworks.
Our contemporary Labor Day celebrations have come a long way from that first strike. This year, the vast majority of Americans will be barbecuing. Or shopping. Or putting their summer whites back into storage. Or choosing the rosters for their fantasy football teams.
This year, there will be only a few marchers waving banners and shouting slogans…
