The Haymarket Square Riot In Chicago

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The Haymarket Square Riot in Chicago actually started out as a rally. It was May, 4, 1886, and the rally quickly turned into a riot when someone threw a bomb at police. Nearly eight people died as a result of the violence in the streets that day. Eight people were also arrested for the bomb, even though they had no evidence that it was them who had done it. The riot was considered a setback for the organized labor movement in America, which was fighting for rights like the eight-hour work day. Yet, the eight men arrested for the bombing were viewed as martyrs.
There is a statue dedicated to the policemen who died as a result of the violence at the Haymarket Square was dedicated at the site of the riot in 1889. A monument to the men convicted …show more content…
For some people, the events led to a heightened anti-labor sentiment, while others, including labor organizers around the world, believed the men had been convicted unfairly and viewed them as martyrs. Clearly the ranks of the Knights of Labor and other unions were filled with many socialists and anarchists. Some were committed to violent disruption of the capitalist system. However, no evidence was provided at the time, nor has any been discovered since, which connected the eight convicted workers to the bomb-throwing. Widespread fear of unionism and other radicalism influenced most of the public to support harsh treatment of the accused.
The riot was also called the Haymarket Affair, and the Haymarket Massacre. To protest police brutality, anarchist labour leaders called a mass meeting the next day in Haymarket Square. That gathering was pronounced peaceful by Chicago Mayor Carter Harrison, who attended as an observer. After Harrison and most of the demonstrators departed, a contingent of police arrived and demanded that the crowd disperse. 60 others wounded before the violence ended; civilian casualties have been estimated at four to eight dead and 30 to 40 …show more content…
Amid the panic, August Spies and seven other anarchists were convicted of murder on the grounds that they had conspired with or aided an unknown assailant. The Haymarket Riot had a lasting effect on the labour movement. The Knights of Labor, at the time the largest and most successful union organization in the country was blamed for the incident. While the KOL also had sought an eight-hour day and had called several strikes to achieve that goal, its involvement in the riot could not be proved. Public distrust, however, caused many KOL locals to join the newly formed and less-radical American Federation of
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