Today in labor history Dec 16, 8 women in Willmar, Minnesota earned international attention

[Omaha Steve]

December 16

The National Civic Federation is formed by business and labor leaders, most prominently AFL president Sam Gompers, as a vehicle to resolve conflicts between management and labor. Not all unionists agreed with the alliance. The group turned increasingly conservative and labor withdrew after Gompers’ 1924 death - 1900

December 16, 1901 - Margaret Mead, anthropologist and social commentator, was born in Philadelphia. Her pioneering works identified common trends in human behavior, whether in a primitive or modern society. "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world," she said. "Indeed, it is the only thing that ever does."

New York City’s Majestic Theater becomes first in the U.S. to employ women ushers - 1902

The Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen & Enginemen & Switchmen’s Union of North America merge to become United Transportation Union - 1968



December 16, 1977 - Eight women in Willmar, Minnesota, initiated the first bank strike in U.S. history. They earned international attention as The Willmar 8. Although they didn't win their strike, they became enduring symbols in the struggle for women's rights and for social and economic justice. Read more about their legacy,, Twenty-five years later, Willmar 8 are heroes to a new generation: http://www.workdayminnesota.org/index.php?article_1_70

[Submariner]

1. And it's Boston Tea Party Day, the beginning of the tax cuts that got us where we are now