Rafaela Prifti/
Labor Day is an annual celebration of the social and economic achievements of American workers. It marks the unofficial end of summer. The holiday is rooted in late nineteenth century, at the time when labor activists pushed for a federal holiday to recognize the contributions of the working class towards America’s economic strength, prosperity, and well-being.
The US Department of Labor says that the day was commemorated by labor activists and in individual states. After municipal ordinances were passed in 1885 and 1886, a movement developed to secure state legislation.
New York was the first state to introduce a bill. “The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. The Central Labor Union held its second Labor Day holiday just a year later, on September 5, 1883.”
After two dozen more states adopted the holiday, on June 28, 1894, Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September of each year a legal holiday. President Grover Cleveland signed a law making the first Monday in September of each year a national holiday.
All across America communities from all backgrounds celebrate Labor Day with parties, gatherings and festivities very similar to those outlined by the first proposal for a holiday, which suggested that the day should be observed with – a street parade to exhibit “the strength and esprit de corps of the trade and labor organizations” of the community, followed by a festival for the recreation and amusement of the workers and their families. “This became the pattern for the celebrations of Labor Day,” states the US Department of Labor.
American labor is a major factor in raising the nation’s standard of living for the country and the biggest contributor to world economy. The official statement says that on Labor Day “the nation pays tribute to the creator of so much of the nation’s strength, freedom, and leadership – the American worker.”
As all communities, Albanian Americans, who have long been part of the American labor, honor today in the traditional festivities of Labor Day.