Mother Jones (1837 - 1930)
Tue Aug 01, 1837
Mary “Mother” Jones, baptized on this day in 1837, was an Irish-born American schoolteacher and dressmaker who became a prominent and militant union organizer in American labor movement. “I’m not a humanitarian, I’m a hell-raiser.” Jones helped coordinate major strikes and co-founded the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW).
Fighting to abolish child labor was one of Jones’ flagship issues. In 1903, Jones organized children who were working in mills and mines to participate in a “Children’s Crusade”, a march from Kensington, Philadelphia to Oyster Bay, New York, the hometown of President Theodore Roosevelt with banners demanding “We want to go to school and not the mines!”
Mother Jones was present during the Paint Creek-Cabin Creek strike of 1912 in West Virginia, speaking and organizing there despite a shooting war between United Mine Workers members and the private army of the mine owners.
Jones was arrested on February 13th, 1913, brought before a military court, and accused of conspiring to commit murder among other charges. She was sentenced to twenty years in the state penitentiary, but released after eighty-five days.
“I’m not a humanitarian, I’m a hell-raiser.”
- Mother Jones
- Date: 1837-08-01
- Learn More: en.wikipedia.org, www.womenshistory.org.
- Tags: #Labor, #IWW.
- Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org
We need more militant labor organizers. Time to remind corporations who’s the real boss around here.
What an incredible life, and legacy. How does she not have some epic hollywood movie made about her is unreal. Between Josephine Baker, Harriet Tubman, and Mary Jones, you’d think they’d have a plethora of movies about them.
