First of May Pamphlet 2023

The 1st of May is a day of celebration: International Workers’ Day. It is a day to celebrate the struggles of the working class and the struggle towards a classless society. It is also a day to celebrate the struggle for the liberation of all stratas of the working class, from people of color, to women, to the queer community.

This specific date was chosen to represent the labor movement due to the Haymarket Riots, which were a series of demonstrations and assemblies held by unionists in the United States from the 1st until the 4th of May 1886 against police brutality and in favor of the eight-hour workday. On the 4th of May, the demonstrations were repressed by the police, which resulted in a militant acting in self-defense by throwing an explosive towards the back of the wall of policemen.

What followed from the riots were a series of fraudulent persecutions, where many individuals with a political association to the unionists were arrested and tried for participating in a conspiracy which simply did not exist.

Funnily enough, before the police attempted to crush the unionists’ assembly, the mayor of the city was let in after he had promised he would listen to demands, when in truth, he was merely surveying his surroundings to determine an ideal time to crush the workers. This move stands as a microcosm of how labor is constantly betrayed by the establishment and those who walk hand-in-hand with the bosses.

In such a manner, the history of the riots shows that the goals of the working class can only be achieved by revolutionary action, and that you cannot create a new society while constantly seeking compromises with the old one. It shows that reformism offers nothing but false hope and delay, that we should never let our guard down after every concession, and instead stand firm upon our demands. Otherwise, we merely play into the hands of the bourgeoisie.

On this May Day, let us renew our commitment to the revolutionary goals of communism, to the ruthless criticism of class society. As the contradictions in global capital sharpen, we must redouble our efforts towards organizing and mobilizing the working class to take action against the bourgeoisie. Let us stand together in solidarity with workers around the globe and continue the struggle until victory is won.

In solidarity with the working class, Revolutionary Technical Committee