Labor Day: A Celebration Of Our Liberties

John Katz Editor The American Dossier In the United States we celebrate Labor Day. A day in which we celebrate not only the fruits of economic labor but our democracy with having liberty such as religious and other freedoms . Our Government is a Republic unlike in a democracy where citizens vote directly on laws elected representatives do. The U.S. government discarded the limited definitions of pure democracy and direct democracy in favor of an expanded version: (1) Democracy is the institutionalization of freedom (2). . . .Power and civic responsibility are exercised by all adult citizens directly or through their freely elected representatives . . . . where all levels of government must be as accessible and responsive to the people as possible . . . . and protect such basic human rights as freedom of speech and religion . . . equal protection under law . . .and the opportunity to organize and participate fully in the political economic and cultural life of society." The first Labor day was actually a work strike where people fought for and ultimately over time led to labor-condition standards and laws as we know them. It occurred on September 5th 1882 in which 10k marched from marched from City Hall to Union Square illustrating their strength which was followed by a festival. Summer is ending and Fall and the reality of cold weather will soon be here. No man can stop time but can surely practice candor courage and humility in reacting to storms of adversity. There are those in the world that mock democracy and persecute religious liberty and other freedoms. It was the suppression of liberty that led to the unfortunate outbreak of WW2. Regardless of religious denomination we are all called to pray and ask forgiveness for our transgressions whether it be for acts of war or lack of communication because of differences in political persuasion. We are all made in the image and likeness of God but we are not God. Eighty years ago on September 5 1939(3) the world was at a disjointed point of turmoil. This was the first day of WW2 in which Germany bombed the Polish city of Wielun. This weekend world leaders were in Poland to commemorate the outbreak of the conflict. German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier condemned the attack. As he stated I bow my head before the Polish victims of Germanys tyranny. And I ask forgiveness." It is often said that history can repeat itself lest we forget. It could easily be said that we are perhaps again at a point of disjointed point in world history. There is much boiling on the world stage with the trade war protests in Hong Kong and the multiple conflicts in the Middle East and Asia. We must look back at history and not let past travesties such as WW2 and the Holocaust repeat themselves. In America we are also at a boiling point on such social issues as equal rights healthcare and immigration mixed with racial and political divide. This weekend we are pre-occupied with celebrating Labor Day as we monitor the possible turmoil from Hurricane Darian . We also sadly experienced another mass shooting this time in Odessa Texas. To make matters a little more disparaging the Democrat Party still seeks to find solace (in its freedom to choose to do so) in identifying itself by finding every way possible to denounce God. As reported by the Washington Examiner(3) the DNC passed a resolution on Saturday praising religiously unaffiliated Americans while also taking aim at religious liberty. Yet once again fixated on their inclusive agenda stating that misplaced claims of religious liberty to justify public policy have threatened the civil rights and liberties of many Americans including but not limited to the LGBT community women and ethnic and religious/nonreligious minorities. A few weeks ago we reported(4) about how Hong Kong became a colony of the British Empire at the end of the First Opium War in 1842. It remained a British Colony until 1997. Britain gave it back to China under special conditions. The conditions were called One country two systems it will fully return to China in 2047. Their fight for democracy continued to escalate this weekend as reported in The Washington Post(5) Protesters hurled firebombs and set blazes Saturday across Hong Kong as they defied warnings to stay off the streets on a key pro-democracy anniversary touching off some of the most dramatic clashes during 13 weeks of unrest over Beijings influence on the territory." With the spoils of war (cultural or otherwise) come consequences. With the world watching and praying perhaps one day democracy will prevail in Hong Kong despite the 2047 decree of returning to full Chinese rule. So what is the American Labor Day holiday about? It is ultimately a celebration of how democracy and our Republic works. Through efforts of people we have legislation which set standards for labor such as the 8 hour work day. During the Industrial Revolution in the 1800s the work week was often 12 hours a day 7 days a week. Children as young as 5 or 6 forced were to work in factories and mines at fraction of the wage of adults. In considering the current immigration issue at hand in 2019 it laid the groundwork to prevent immigrants from being abused. Unlike other holidays such as May Day it was not focused on a particular person or point in history but on social and economic achievements of All Americans. Simply it is a yearly national tribute to the contributions made by workers to the strength prosperity and well being of our country. It is not about race creed political affiliation it is a celebration of having liberty. (1) http://photos.state.gov/libraries/korea/49271/dwoa_122709/Democracy-in-Brief_kor.pdf (2) http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2014/01/united-states-republic-democracy/ (3) https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-49541111 (4) https://www.theamericandossier.com/post/china-s-pr-nightmare-hong-kong-one-country-two-systems-and-the-path-to-2047 (5)https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/hong-kong-defies-ban-and-sweep-of-arrests-for-yet-another-protest/2019/08/31/a8f9aa7a-cb22-11e9-9615-8f1a32962e04_story.html