On August 28, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his speech “I Have a Dream” speech, he wanted to end economic and employment inequalities and 60 years later, “I Have a Dream” still resonates on the March of 2023, with same problems of yesterday. 

In 1894 Congress declared Labor Day, the first Monday in September a national holiday which would honor workers and their contributions to the well-being of the country. Labor Day dates to the 1886 Haymarket Riot in Chicago, workers and supporters from May 1- 4 were advocating for an eight-hour workday, which was the aftermath of a bombing that took place at a labor demonstration on May 4, 1886.

The early-September tribute to workers has been an official holiday for almost 130 years — but an emboldened labor movement has created an environment closer to the era from which Labor Day was born. Like the late 1800s, workers are facing rapid economic transformation — and a growing gap in pay between themselves and new billionaire leaders of industry, mirroring the stark inequalities seen more than a century ago.