The First of May was coming. This Day of Workers' Solidarity is of great importance to American workers because this holiday was born rn 1886 in Chicago, when a mass demonstration was organized in support of an eight-hour working day.
The First of May was coming. This Day of Workers' Solidarity is of great importance to American workers because this holiday was born rn 1886 in Chicago, when a mass demonstration was organized in support of an eight-hour working day.
Since 1928 the young pioneers of America also took an active part in theceLe-bration of May 1. They organized school strikes on that day and did not attend lessons. Hundreds of children in many towns and cities on the First of May took part in worker's demonstrations and meetings. The young pioneers of School No. 61 also decided to hold a meeting before the First of May, but the Principal, Mr. Macguire called the police which dispersed the meeting. A group of pioneers was arrested and taken away in the police car, «the Black Mary», as they called it. They were not taken very far away and were allowed to go home on condition that they would stop their activity.
The next day the young pioneers wrote a number of leaflets, and hung them out in the school corridor. Here is one of those leaflets:
«Don't Go to School on May 1!
Workers' children! On May 1 workers in many countries stop work in protest against poverty and exploitation. But the bosses proclaim May 1 the Day of Children's Health! We must remember that in the USA 3,500,000 workers' children have to work so that their bosses get higher profits and become still richer; we must remember the growing poverty of the strikers' families, the heroic struggle of the striking miners and the sufferings of their children. On May 1 we must protest against all that. We must help the grown-ups on that day. They will stop work and we must put aside our books, pens and pencils.
Don't go to school on May 1! Come this day to Madison Square Garden to the Workers' Meeting!»
When the Principal, Mr. Macguire, saw this leaflet, he was angry. He made a speech in the school assembly hall. He said: «The First of May will be examination day for all the classes. Those who will miss the exams will not be promoted to the next grade».
The young pioneers did not know .what to do. They did not want to miss the examinations, but they could not disobey the pioneer organization.
Their elder comrades, the Young Communists told then: «Don't be afraid. If other pupils do the same there will be no exams on that day».
On May 1 the weather was warm and sunny. Before the pupils started coming to school the young pioneers put pickets in different parts of the road. But the police also arrived in their black wagon.
The pupils began coming. The pickets met them and explained the importance of May Day, they told them not to go to school. But the policemen came up and began pushing the children into the school building. A big classroom was soon full of boys and girls. The Principal, Mr. Macguire came in with two policemen. He was very angry. With his fat finger he pointed out several pioneer activists and the policeman led the children out. They were taken in the police car to the nearest juvenile court.
The trial of the young pioneers was fixed for May 4. On that day every pioneer had to come to the court with his parents. When they all came, the judge reprimanded the children for wishing to celebrate the May Day and laid a fine on the parents.
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