Today in Labor History July 14 Singer Woody Guthrie was born, 2 convicted of murder unfairly, more

[Omaha Steve]

July 14

The Great Uprising nationwide railway strike begins in Martinsburg, W.Va. after railroad workers are hit with their second pay cut in a year. In the following days, strike riots spread through 17 states. The next week, federal troops were called out to force an end to the strike - 1877


Woody Guthrie, writer of "This Land is Your Land" and "Union Maid," born in Okemah, Okla. - 1912 (For more on Woody’s amazing life, check out Woody Guthrie: A Life, by Joe Klein. This is an easy-to-read, honest description of Guthrie’s life, from a childhood of poverty to a youth spent "bummin’ around" to an adulthood of music and organizing -- and a life cut short by incurable disease. Guthrie’s life and work inspired millions while he lived and continues to do so through musicians such as his son Arlo, Bob Dylan -- who as a teenager visited and sang for Guthrie as death approached -- friend and contemporary Pete Seeger, Billy Bragg and Bruce Springsteen, to name just a few. In the UCS bookstore now.)

And this: July 14, 1912 - Singer Woody Guthrie was born. Perhaps his best-known song is "This Land is Your Land," an anthem to democracy. During the Great Depression, he captured the mood of the country. Many of his songs live on at rallies and on picketlines. He inspired numerous other artists, including Pete Seeger and Bob Dylan.

Hear Woody sing and learn more about him at the official Woody Guthrie website, www.woodyguthrie.org

Italian immigrants and anarchists Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti are convicted in Massachusetts of murder and payroll robbery – unfairly, most historians agree – after a two-month trial, and are eventually executed. Fifty years after their deaths the state's governor issued a proclamation saying they had been treated unfairly and that "any disgrace should be forever removed from their names." - 1921

Labor history found here: http://www.unionist.com/today-in-labor-history & here: http://www.workdayminnesota.org/index.php?history_9_07_14_2011