Not May Day

I got myself confused, as I so often do, and thought that today was May 1, and I planned to talk about working people, and unions, and solidarity.  But it's May 2.  So here are some flowers I photographed while on my very long and speedy path through Central Market.  And I'll talk about May Day anyway.

When I was young, our family belonged to the Workmen's Circle, a Jewish fraternal organization that provided affordable health care, a summer camp, and other benefits for working people. I went to summer camp there when I was about 6, and had a great time - I think. ( I remember it more from photographs than from actual experience.)  In the days before health insurance, it made it possible for working class folks to stay healthy.

My family has a long history of labor union involvement.  As I mentioned in a previous blip, my great aunt was one of the founders of the International Ladies Garment Workers Union. organized after the dreadful Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, in which so many women burned to death.  In my mind, unions are one of the greatest achievements in American history; whatever their faults, they are the reason workers have bearable working hours, a livable wage, and working conditions that allow them to stay healthy and raise healthy families.  Workers of the World, Unite!