Haymarket Riot Trial

The National Labor Union wants an eight-hour work day. Illinois pass the eight-hour work day but the employers will not comply to the law. The Federation of Organized Trade and the Labor Unions makes their goal to make the eight-hour work day legal. Workers lobby to pass this law without a pay cut and win. May 1st, 1886 100,000 workers go on strike in support of the eight-hour work day in Chicago and the strike ends peacefully. May 3rd police attack demonstrators with clubs and bullets at McCormick’s Reaper Works spies ask for military help men organize at a meeting to discuss their strategy they gather 30 to 50 bombs. a rally to protest the violent attack on demonstrators at McCormicks and support the eight-hour day begins at Haymarket in Chicago.  Police arrive and want the rally to end then bombs are thrown into the crowd of police and many are fatally injured. August Spies, Henry Spies, Lizzie Holmesand Michael Schwab are arrested at the office of the Arbeiter-Zeitung, as the police raid the newspaper.  Elsewhere, police arrest Adolph Fischer, Gerhard Lizius, Herman Pudewa, Lucy Parsons, Sarah Ames, and Samuel Fielden. In response to the Haymarket Riot, Mayor Harrison proclaims that all public gatherings are now illegal. Other men are arrested one man runs to Wisconsin and a grand jury is assembled. They are charged with the murder of one of the officers, officer Degan. All but one are sentenced to die. Two sentences are change to life sentences and are eventually pardoned the others are hanged. This all leads to The Fair Labor Standards Act which makes the eight-hour work day legal. This event took place during the labor movement which made employers and employees butt heads and created bad blood between both groups which caused bloodshed. This movement change the world because it gave workers rights and not slaves. Chicago delt with the strikes violently so the laborers retaliated with violence.