Live Through All Time or Die

Libraries Essential to Democracy
Nicholas Johnson
The Gazette, August 24, 2022, p. A6
At least some Americans may be slowly awakening to the demise of their democracy.

As Abraham Lincoln said in 1838, and others emphasized since, “At what point then is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer, if it ever reach us, it must spring up amongst us. It cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide.”

Well, it has now “sprung up amongst us.”

As a stew is the result of its ingredients, so is a democracy the result of the civic organizations and institutions that support its shaky structure: a courageous, trusted mass media; a wise, respected non-partisan judiciary; citizens who vote and honorable officials who count those votes.

Central is the cluster of efforts to prepare all citizens to be their own governors. Elections. Public schools. First Amendment protections and reduced postal rates for newspapers and books. Local and national elections. The roads and rail to turn “e pluribus” into “unum.”

And public libraries.

Although the Nazis’ book burnings are perhaps the most notorious, authoritarians have been burning books for 2,000 years. [Photo: Book burning in Nazi Germany, 1933; source: Wikimedia commons]

The U.S. is no exception. When the British burned the 3,000 books in the Capitol during the War of 1812, Thomas Jefferson offered to sell the Congress his near-7,000 book library. Because Federalists argued his books would spread his “infidel philosophy,” the appropriation to buy them only passed by a narrow margin along party lines. Sound familiar?

Forcing librarians to leave, and a library to close, while less dramatic than book burning, produces the same result. As it did in Vinton, Iowa, earlier this year – even though Americans overwhelmingly oppose removal of books from libraries (70 percent Republicans, 75 percent Democrats). [Photo: Vinton, Iowa, public library; source: https://www.vinton.lib.ia.us/about/library-history]

Libraries have been a part of Homo Sapiens’ culture since our agricultural age. One of the first, in the seventh century BC, well before Dewey decimal classification, held 30,000 cuneiform tablets organized by topic.

Not surprisingly, it was political organizing by members of women’s clubs that led the establishment of 75-80 percent of U.S. libraries in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

In 1896 the Cedar Rapids Federation of Ladies Literacy Clubs generated enough public pressure for a library that the City Council scheduled a vote. Iowa was then one of two states that allowed women to vote on limited tax issues, including libraries.

It was approved by 59 votes (1,105 to 1,046).

The Gazette reported that “Had it not been for the efforts of the women themselves who voted in every ward in the city, the proposition would undoubtedly have been lost” – noting that half the men who voted didn’t bother to vote on the library proposal.

Today’s Iowa public libraries, and their personnel, still offer books and “information desks,” but oh, so much more. Never have they been more essential if our democracy is to “live through all time.”
__________
Nicholas Johnson was a Presidential Advisor, White House Conference on Libraries and Information Services, 1979 Contact mailbox@nicholasjohnson.org

SOURCES
Lincoln on “approach of danger.” Abraham Lincoln, “The Perpetuation of Our Political Institutions,” Springfield, Young Men’s Lyceum, Jan. 27, 1837, “Report of Address Before the young Men’s Lyceum of Springfield, Illinois, 27 January 1838,” Roy P. Basler, ed., The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln, Rutgers University Press, 1953, https://papersofabrahamlincoln.org/documents/D200130

Nazi book burning. Michael S. Roth, “How Nazis destroyed books in a quest to destroy European culture,” Washington Post, Feb. 24, 2017, https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/how-nazis-destroyed-books-in-a-quest-to-destroy-european-culture/2017/02/24/244aee94-cdf3-11e6-a87f-b917067331bb_story.html Photo on Wikimedia commons: On Wikimedia commons: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b4/Joseph_Schorer_B%C3%BCcherverbrennung_1933.jpg/640px-Joseph_Schorer_B%C3%BCcherverbrennung_1933.jpg

“Book Burning,” Holocaust Encyclopedia, U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/book-burning

Authoritarians burning books. “Book Burning, 213 BC-2011 AD,” University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, https://uwm.edu/libraries/burnedbooks/ (“Since ancient times, people from virtually all religions and societies have burned books as a form of censorship, protest, or hate mongering. … Tyrants throughout history -- from Imperial China to Stalin to the Khmer Rouge to Castro -- have attempted to preemptively quell sedition by eliminating subversive texts from the population.”)

Jefferson’s library. “Sale of Books to the Library of Congress (1815),” Monticello, https://www.monticello.org/research-education/thomas-jefferson-encyclopedia/sale-books-library-congress-1815 (“Jefferson's offer was met by warm support from many in the House and Senate; still, the bill introduced to authorize the purchase of Jefferson's library faced congressional opposition, particularly from the Federalists, such as Cyrus King, who argued that Jefferson's books would help disseminate his "infidel philosophy" and were "good, bad, and indifferent ... in languages which many cannot read, and most ought not."[3] The bill finally passed with a narrow margin along party lines.[4]”

Vinton library. Gage Miskimen, “With another leader leaving, Vinton Public Library closes for now; Library lost 2 directors in 2 years amid resident complaints,” The Gazette, July 9, 2022, https://www.thegazette.com/news/with-another-leader-leaving-vinton-public-library-closes-for-now/ (“The library board met Tuesday to accept the resignation of Colton Neely, the interim director. … Most recently departing the library before Neely was Renee Greenlee, its director for six months. … Vinton also saw another director, Janette McMahon, resign in July 2021. … McMahon previously told The Gazette that she received complaints about children’s books on display, including “Joey,” written by first lady Jill Biden, and “Superheroes Are Everywhere” by Vice President Kamala Harris. She said some residents argued the library should have more books about former Republican President Donald Trump on display. “I can’t buy what doesn’t exist, and there weren’t quality books about Trump.”)

Gage Miskimen, “Two directors quit Vinton library after complaints about hirings, LGBTQ and Biden books,” The Gazette, June 20/July 10, 2022, hegazette.com/news/two-directors-quit-vinton-library-after-complaints-about-hirings-lgbtq-and-biden-books/

Gage Miskimen, “Vinton Library to Reopen Monday with Limited Hours,” The Gazette, July 15, 2022, p. A1 (“Previous directors left for other jobs amid city resident complaints about the library’s display of LGBTQ books and books about Democratic President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.”)

Opposition to book removal. American Library Association, https://www.ala.org/advocacy/fight-censorship (“Large majorities of voters (71%) oppose efforts to have books removed from their local public libraries, including a majority of Democrats (75%), independents (58%), and Republicans (70%). Most voters and parents hold librarians in high regard, have confidence in their local libraries to make good decisions about what books to include in their collections, and agree that libraries in their communities do a good job offering books that represent a variety of viewpoints. Hart Research Associates and North Star Opinion Research on behalf of the American Library Association among 1,000 voters and 472 parents of children in public school. The survey was conducted March 1 to 6, 2022, and the sample is demographically and geographically representative of U.S. voters and parents.”)

History of Libraries. Don Vaughan,” A Brief History of Libraries,” britanica.com, https://www.britannica.com/story/a-brief-history-of-libraries (“The library concept dates back millennia. The first systematically organized library in the ancient Middle East was established in the 7th century BCE by Assyrian ruler Ashurbanipal in Nineveh, in contemporary Iraq. It contained approximately 30,000 cuneiform tablets assembled by topic.”)

Dewey Decimal Classification, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dewey_Decimal_Classification

Women and libraries. Carnegie Library, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnegie_library (“Beginning in 1899, Carnegie's foundation funded a dramatic increase in the number of libraries. This coincided with the rise of women's clubs in the post-Civil War period. They primarily took the lead in organizing local efforts to establish libraries, including long-term fundraising and lobbying within their communities to support operations and collections.[5] They led the establishment of 75–80 percent of the libraries in communities across the country.[6]”)

“Our History,” Cedar Rapids Public Library, https://www.crlibrary.org/our-history/ (“While women could not vote generally, in 1894, Iowa became one of only two states to pass legislation allowing women to vote on limited tax issues, including library levies. The City Council put the matter to a public vote on March 2, 1896. The results were 1,105 votes yes to 1,046 no. The library was approved by just 59 votes. The Gazette reported returns showed half the men who voted didn’t vote on the question at all, and speculated the vote may be challenged on the grounds that ‘the women are illegal.’ “Had it not been for the efforts of the women themselves who voted in every ward in the city, the proposition would undoubtedly have been lost,” the article said. The mayor asked Van Vechten to choose the new library’s first Board of Trustees. The four women and five men of the new board elected Van Vechten their president. The Gazette dubbed her “the mother of the library.”)

# # #

Which Side Are You On?

Which Side Are You On?
Nicholas Johnson
The Gazette, July 26, 2022, p. A6
In a panel discussion of whether America’s difficulties were the fault of media or politicians, Congressman Barney Frank interjected, “Our constituents aren’t all that great either.”

Abraham Lincoln, like George Washington and Thomas Jefferson before him, warned of the fragility of a democracy confronting an authoritarian-driven mob: “And when such a one does [appear] it will require the people to be united with each other, attached to the government and laws, and generally intelligent, to successfully frustrate his designs.”

The House Select January 6 Committee’s investigation of officials encouraging authoritarian dictatorship is essential – in a country where 44% of U.S. households, 50 percent of Republicans and 18 percent of Democrats have guns.

And yes, a democracy requires independent, respected institutions, such as judges and courts, human rights and voting rights, newspapers and libraries.

However, as with Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson’s oft-quoted preference of “newspapers without government” (over “government without newspapers”) was followed with the less mentioned, “but I should mean that every [person] should receive those papers and be capable of reading them.”

Both Jefferson and Lincoln were emphasizing the need to prepare us as citizens.

Americans will someday search for the enemy who caused our democracy to crumble and wash away, like sandcastles at the seashore. They will discover, as Walt Kelly’s cartoon Pogo observed, “we have met the enemy and he is us.”

The founders realized all Americans would need to be well informed and involved to function as democracy’s governors. They made it job one for each of us. Volunteers, handsomely paid with the rights and freedoms of democracy, in exchange for responsibilities willingly accepted.

To train us they provided free public education. Iowa created more one-room schoolhouses than any other state (12,000-plus). To create the social benefits of easily accessible information the founders created a postal service with reduced rates for books, magazines, newspapers and nonprofits. The colonial libraries have expanded to over 9,000 today – 542 in Iowa.

Each of us can help keep our democracy – or push us further down the slope to fascist dictatorship – in hundreds of little and big ways each day. Whether you chose to praise our election officials, teachers and librarians – or drive them to resign (as in Vinton). Whether you choose to subscribe or advertise in newspapers.

Whether you volunteer in political campaigns, contribute what you can, and never miss voting. Stay informed about policy and politics, while questioning unsupported assertions. Learn enough about other democracies evolution into authoritarian states to spot those changes here. Participate in neighborhood associations and civic organizations.

Pew reports only 40 percent of Americans are committed to democracy. A third of Republicans and 17 percent of Democrats say, “a strong leader who can govern without interference from other branches of government is a good thing.”

“Which side are you on, boys?” union organizers sang in 1930s Harlan, Kentucky. It’s a question you must answer today. The most important decision you’ll ever make. You can’t sit this one out.

Which side are you on?

[Photo source: "Harlan County War," wikipedia.org/wiki/Harlan_County_War] _______________
Nicholas Johnson is the author of Columns of Democracy. Contact mailbox@nicholasjohnson.org

SOURCES
Barney Frank. The quote is from memory. I heard him say it. But I cannot find a source where it is reported or recall the details.

“Barney Frank,” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barney_Frank#Public_image (“In 2004 and again in 2006, a survey of Capitol Hill staffers published in Washingtonian [magazine] gave Frank the title of the ‘brainiest,’ ‘funniest,’ and ‘most eloquent’ member of the House.”)

Abraham Lincoln. “Report of Address Before the Young Men’s Lyceum of Springfield, Illinois, 27 January 1838, ‘The Perpetuation of Our Political Institutions,” (full text Lincoln speech), https://papersofabrahamlincoln.org/documents/D200130 (See full paragraph beginning: “The question recurs “how shall we fortify against it?”)

George Washington. “Washington’s Farewell Address to the People of the United States,” Sept. 19, 1796, U.S. Senate, https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/resources/pdf/Washingtons_Farewell_Address.pdf

(“Promote then, as an object of primary importance, institutions for the general diffusion of knowledge. In proportion as the structure of a government gives force to public opinion, it is essential that public opinion should be enlightened.”)

Thomas Jefferson. See below.

January 6 Committee. “Select Committee to Investigate the January 6xth Attack on the United States Capitol,” https://january6th.house.gov/

Gun ownership. Lydia Saad, “What Percentage of Americans Own Guns?” Gallup News, https://news.gallup.com/poll/264932/percentage-americans-own-guns.aspx

32% of Americans own guns; 44% live in a gun household “Republicans (50%), rural residents (48%), men (45%), self-identified conservatives (45%) and Southerners (40%) are the most likely subgroups to say they personally own a gun. Liberals (15%), Democrats (18%), non-White Americans (18%), women (19%) and Eastern residents (21%) are the least likely to report personal gun ownership.”

Thomas Jefferson. “Jefferson Quotes & Family Letters,” Monticello, https://tjrs.monticello.org/letter/1289

(“Promote then, as an object of primary importance, institutions for the general diffusion of knowledge. In proportion as the structure of a government gives force to public opinion, it is essential that public opinion should be enlightened.” … (“the basis of our governments being the opinion of the people, the very first object should be to keep that right; and were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter, but I should mean that every man should receive those papers & be capable of reading them.”)

Pogo/“we have met the enemy.” “Pogo (comic strip),” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pogo_%28comic_strip%29 (page contains image of strip with that quote)

Iowa schoolhouses. “A Walk Through Iowa’s One-Room Schoolhouses,” Iowa Department of Education,” https://educateiowa.gov/walk-through-iowa-s-one-room-schoolhouses

(“Take the one-room school house, once ubiquitous across Iowa’s country landscape. Numbering an astonishing 12,000 to 14,000 at one time, depending on what report you use, Iowa had more one-room school houses than any other state in the union.”)

Postal Service and reduced rates. “A Brief History of Preferred Postal Rates,” U.S. Postal Service Inspector General, Aug. 20, 2012, https://www.uspsoig.gov/blog/brief-history-preferred-postage-rates

(“Since the beginning of the Post Office and the Postal Act of 1792, certain types of mail have qualified for lower postage through preferred rates. It was assumed that these types of mailings yield social benefits for senders, recipients, and more importantly, a large nation. Preferred rates’ roots trace to the first federal postal policy, which recognized that disseminating newspapers at below-cost postage would advance the important social goal of educating the electorate. Soon after, magazines received special rates. For its first 50 years, the Post Office was predominantly a newspaper circulation service . . ..”)

Vinton librarians. Gage Miskimen, “With another leader leaving, Vinton Public Library closes for now; Library lost 2 directors in 2 years amid resident complaints,” The Gazette, July 9, 2022, https://www.thegazette.com/news/with-another-leader-leaving-vinton-public-library-closes-for-now/

(“The library board met Tuesday to accept the resignation of Colton Neely, the interim director. Neely, formerly the library’s children’s director, will become a museum curator in Burlington. . . . Most recently departing the library before Neely was Renee Greenlee, its director for six months. She had been the children’s and family services library assistant at the Marion Public Library and had worked at the Hiawatha Public Library and the Kirkwood Community College library. Greenlee, who left the Vinton post in May and started a new job at the Cedar Rapids Public Library, declined to comment. . . . Vinton also saw another director, Janette McMahon, resign in July 2021. She now is director of the DeWitt Public Library in Clinton County.

McMahon previously told The Gazette that she received complaints about children’s books on display, including “Joey,” written by first lady Jill Biden, and “Superheroes Are Everywhere” by Vice President Kamala Harris. She said some residents argued the library should have more books about former Republican President Donald Trump on display.

“I can’t buy what doesn’t exist, and there weren’t quality books about Trump.”)

Gage Miskimen, “Two directors quit Vinton library after complaints about hirings, LGBTQ and Biden books,” The Gazette, June 20/July 10, 2022, Thegazette.com/news/two-directors-quit-vinton-library-after-complaints-about-hirings-lgbtq-and-biden-books/

Gage Miskimen, “Vinton Library to Reopen Monday with Limited Hours,” The Gazette, July 15, 2022, p. A1

(“closed this week after losing its interim director — and, before that, two directors in two years — will reopen for limited hours beginning Monday.

Marandah Mangra-Dutcher, “Johnson County librarians oppose Iowa bills looking to change intellectual freedom,” The Daily Iowan, March 20, 2022, https://dailyiowan.com/2022/03/20/johnson-county-librarians-oppose-iowa-bills-looking-to-change-intellectual-freedom/

David Sye, “Beyond Book Banning: Efforts to Criminally Charge Librarians,” Office for Intellectual Freedom, American Library Association, March 8, 2022, https://www.oif.ala.org/oif/beyond-book-banning-efforts-to-criminally-charge-librarians/

Vinton, Iowa, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vinton,_Iowa

Marcela Cabello and Stuart M. Butler, “How Public Libraries Help Build Healthy Communities,” Brookings, https://www.brookings.edu/blog/up-front/2017/03/30/how-public-libraries-help-build-healthy-communities/

(“According to a 2015 Pew survey, almost two-thirds of adult Americans say that closing their local library would have a major impact on their community. As Pew found, over 90 percent of adults think of public libraries as “welcoming and friendly places,” and about half have visited or otherwise used a public library in the last 12 months.”)

Crystle Martin, “Who says libraries are dying? They are evolving into spaces for innovation,” theconversation.com, Aug. 19, 2015, https://theconversation.com/who-says-libraries-are-dying-they-are-evolving-into-spaces-for-innovation-44820

(“many of today’s public libraries are taking on newer roles. They are offering programs in technology, career and college readiness and also in innovation and entrepreneurship – all 21st-century skills, essential for success in today’s economy.”

Pew authoritarian study. Richard Wike, Katie Simmons, Bruce Stokes and Janell Fetterolf, “Globally, Broad Support for Representative and Direct Democracy,” Pew Research Center, October 16, 2017, https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2017/10/16/globally-broad-support-for-representative-and-direct-democracy/

(“Unconstrained executive power also has its supporters. In 20 countries, a quarter or more of those polled think a system in which a strong leader can make decisions without interference from parliament or the courts is a good form of government.”

[Info in chart; not quotation. U.S. 40% committed to democracy; additional 44% willing to consider non-democratic alternatives]

“And in the U.S., a third of Republicans say a strong leader who can govern without interference from other branches of government is a good thing, compared with 20% of independents and 17% of Democrats.”)

Which side are you on? “Which Side Are You On?” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Which_Side_Are_You_On%3F (origins),

“Which Side Are You On?” (song; 1941 recording by Almanac Singers including Pete Seeger, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEwE0R_7TDc&t=17s (or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEwE0R_7TDc)

Harlan, Kentucky. “Harlan County War,” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harlan_County_War

(“The Harlan County War, or Bloody Harlan, was a series of coal mining-related skirmishes, executions, bombings, and strikes (both attempted and realized) that took place in Harlan County, Kentucky, during the 1930s. The incidents involved coal miners and union organizers on one side, and coal firms and law enforcement officials on the other.[1] The question at hand: the rights of Harlan County coal miners to organize their workplaces and better their wages and working conditions. It was a nearly decade-long conflict, lasting from 1931 to 1939. Before its conclusion, an indeterminate number of miners, deputies, and bosses would be killed, state and federal troops would occupy the county more than half a dozen times, two acclaimed folk singers would emerge, union membership would oscillate wildly, and workers in the nation's most anti-labor coal county would ultimately be represented by a union.”)

# # #

Tags: Abraham Lincoln, authoritarian, Barney Frank, democracy, education, George Washington, citizen governors, guns, Harlan County War, House Jan 6 Committee, January 6, Thomas Jefferson

Labor Day for All 2016

United We Bargain Divided We Beg
NOTE: This blog essay was first posted September 2, 2014 -- the day after Labor Day that year. It seems even more applicable today, prior to the September 5, 2016, Labor Day Picnic of the Iowa City Federation of Labor.

I am glad to know that there is a system of labor where the laborer can strike if he wants to! I would to God that such a system prevailed all over the world.

-- President Abraham Lincoln, "Notes for Speech at Hartford, Connecticut," March 5, 1860, Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln, vol. 4, p. 7

Labor unions have meant new dignity and pride to millions of our countrymen—human companionship on the job, and music in the home -- to be able to see what larger pay checks mean, not to a man as an employee, but as a husband and as a father -- to know these things is to understand what American labor means.

-- Adlai Stevenson, Democratic Party Presidential Nominee, 1952, 1956

Today in America, unions have a secure place in our industrial life. Only a handful of reactionaries harbor the ugly thought of breaking unions and depriving working men and women of the right to join the union of their choice. I have no use for those -- regardless of their political party . . ..

-- President Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1954

Every advance in this half-century--Social Security, civil rights, Medicare, aid to education, one after another--came with the support and leadership of American Labor.

-- President Jimmy Carter [Previous three quotes from "Presidential Quotes."]

It was working men and women who made the 20th century the American century. It was the labor movement that helped secure so much of what we take for granted today. The 40-hour work week, the minimum wage, family leave, health insurance, Social Security, Medicare, retirement plans. The cornerstones of the middle-class security all bear the union label.

-- President Barack Obama, "President Obama on Labor Day: The Fight for America's Workers Continues," Milwaukee, Sept. 6, 2010

_______________
Yesterday, Labor Day, September 1, 2014, I attended the Iowa City Labor Day Picnic in the Iowa City Park -- as I usually do on Labor Day. There are pictures, below, that capture a wee bit of the spirit of that gathering. It is an opportunity once a year for members and friends of labor to gather, share food everyone has provided (what we used to call a "pot luck" meal), listen to political candidates and quality live music, and generally share what was a lovely summer day in the park.

Most union members have at least some notion of the history of labor in this country, and the sacrifices that were made by our predecessors to gain the right to bargain with management collectively rather than individually. There are brief references to that history in Labor Day speeches, but that's about all. The folks present yesterday know that history, and didn't need anyone to run through all the details.

But the day before Labor Day I put a brief comment on Facebook for the benefit of those who don't attend Labor Day picnics, and are apt to know much less about the history of America's working people. It has since gained a couple dozen shares, and many more comments and "likes." But on the assumption you haven't seen it, I'm going to reprint it here, along with the picture of a poster I used with it.

When I wrote it I had done no research, and just spoke from the heart and memory. As you'll see from the quotes above, which I've just found on the Internet, apparently a great many others -- of all political stripes -- have shared these sentiments over the years, from President Lincoln to President Obama.

Here is that Facebook entry:

Regardless of your politics or what you've been told about unions, take a moment tomorrow to thank "Those wonderful folks who brought you the weekend, the minimum wage, the end to child labor, the 40-hour week, a safer workplace than you otherwise would have had, the decades-long fight for healthcare (remember, health INSURANCE is not health CARE), Social Security in your old age -- among a great many other things."

Remember, they also were beaten and died and imprisoned when they stood up for their rights (and ours) in the face of police and National Guard called out by public officials as much in the pocket of the corporate interests of their day as ours are today. Unions were the muscle that built the post-WWII middle class, and booming economy, and elected officials who talked to each other and did stuff. This poster tells it all: "United We Bargain. Divided We Beg." It's the only way that's ever worked. Since the 1980s we've been begging.

Here's my point. On July 4th every American celebrates the Revolutionary War, the signing of the Declaration of Independence, and the beginning of our nation. It is not a day limited to the descendants of those who fought in that War -- such as the Daughters of the American Revolution. We all celebrate, we all remember.

No, I'm not saying everyone needs to go to a labor union's Labor Day picnic, anymore than everyone should go to a DAR meeting on July 4th. But on both days, I believe, it contributes to our nation's civic health for all of us to reflect upon the debt we owe to those who have gone before us -- along with the ways in which the economic and other problems we have as a nation today are a product of our failure to remember, and apply, the lessons we should have learned when labor unions were a partner with business in building one of the greatest periods in our history.

From 1945 until the 1980s unions were strong. The rich paid substantial taxes, and income inequality was nowhere nearly as stark as it is today. The economy was booming; union workers were paid well, and spent freely, which increased the profits of business, created a demand for more jobs, enabled parents to afford college for their kids, and kept things humming. As a result, both the rich and their workers did better than they otherwise would have.

We need to realize, for example, that what is called a "raise" in the minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.50 is not a raise at all -- it is merely bringing the minimum wage back up to the level of buying power it had in 1968.

When Wall Street and big business treat the human mothers and fathers who are their workers as a "cost center," and expense item -- even putting aside the human consequences for a moment -- the resulting decline in the economy, as those workers lose buying power, ends up harming the rich as well as the poor.

Unions, the ability of workers to bargain collectively rather than individually, and to be paid at least a living wage, has always been the only way to maintain any economy -- especially one like ours that is 70% dependent upon consumer spending.

OK, enough of all that. Here are some pictures from a great Iowa City Labor Day.

Here is what the shelter and the grounds looked like when I arrived on my bicycle. Tom Jacobs took this picture; the others are ones I took. Congressman Dave Loebsack had a lot of Labor Day events to hit yesterday, and so was allowed to speak and run before all the food had even been set out.

But the food was soon laid out on a table as long as the shelter house for these folks who like to talk almost more than they like to eat. Some stayed out in the sun, but most gathered at the shelter house tables, as I did.

One of the continuing highlights of the event most years, as it was this year, was the very generous provision of live music throughout the afternoon provided by Pigs and Clover, otherwise known as Matt and Jamie Kearney. They have one of the greatest collections of union songs I've ever heard, great voices, a driving guitar and drum rhythm, and a good sense of fun.

To give you a sense of the music (and the crowd noise) here is a one-minute excerpt from their rendition of "Mean Winds" (taken by me with an iPhone):



As a special event, our Johnson County Attorney, Janet Lyness, took and passed the ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) Ice Bucket Challenge executed by her daughter.

All in all it was a really great day.

September 5, 2016, promises to be as great a day as September 1, 2014 (although no ice bucket challenges are on the program this year so far as I know).

# # #

Labor Day for All

September 2, 2014, 10:45 p.m.

I am glad to know that there is a system of labor where the laborer can strike if he wants to! I would to God that such a system prevailed all over the world.

-- President Abraham Lincoln, "Notes for Speech at Hartford, Connecticut," March 5, 1860, Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln, vol. 4, p. 7

Labor unions have meant new dignity and pride to millions of our countrymen—human companionship on the job, and music in the home -- to be able to see what larger pay checks mean, not to a man as an employee, but as a husband and as a father -- to know these things is to understand what American labor means.

-- Adlai Stevenson, Democratic Party Presidential Nominee, 1952, 1956

Today in America, unions have a secure place in our industrial life. Only a handful of reactionaries harbor the ugly thought of breaking unions and depriving working men and women of the right to join the union of their choice. I have no use for those -- regardless of their political party . . ..

-- President Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1954

Every advance in this half-century--Social Security, civil rights, Medicare, aid to education, one after another--came with the support and leadership of American Labor.

-- President Jimmy Carter [Previous three quotes from "Presidential Quotes."]

It was working men and women who made the 20th century the American century. It was the labor movement that helped secure so much of what we take for granted today. The 40-hour work week, the minimum wage, family leave, health insurance, Social Security, Medicare, retirement plans. The cornerstones of the middle-class security all bear the union label.

-- President Barack Obama, "President Obama on Labor Day: The Fight for America's Workers Continues," Milwaukee, Sept. 6, 2010

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Yesterday, Labor Day, September 1, 2014, I attended the Iowa City Labor Day Picnic in the Iowa City Park -- as I usually do on Labor Day. There are pictures, below, that capture a wee bit of the spirit of that gathering. It is an opportunity once a year for members and friends of labor to gather, share food everyone has provided (what we used to call a "pot luck" meal), listen to political candidates and quality live music, and generally share what was a lovely summer day in the park.

Most union members have at least some notion of the history of labor in this country, and the sacrifices that were made by our predecessors to gain the right to bargain with management collectively rather than individually. There are brief references to that history in Labor Day speeches, but that's about all. The folks present yesterday know that history, and didn't need anyone to run through all the details.

But the day before Labor Day I put a brief comment on Facebook for the benefit of those who don't attend Labor Day picnics, and are apt to know much less about the history of America's working people. It has since gained a couple dozen shares, and many more comments and "likes." But on the assumption you haven't seen it, I'm going to reprint it here, along with the picture of a poster I used with it.

When I wrote it I had done no research, and just spoke from the heart and memory. As you'll see from the quotes above, which I've just found on the Internet, apparently a great many others -- of all political stripes -- have shared these sentiments over the years, from President Lincoln to President Obama.



Here is that Facebook entry:

Regardless of your politics or what you've been told about unions, take a moment tomorrow to thank "Those wonderful folks who brought you the weekend, the minimum wage, the end to child labor, the 40-hour week, a safer workplace than you otherwise would have had, the decades-long fight for healthcare (remember, health INSURANCE is not health CARE), Social Security in your old age -- among a great many other things."

Remember, they also were beaten and died and imprisoned when they stood up for their rights (and ours) in the face of police and National Guard called out by public officials as much in the pocket of the corporate interests of their day as ours are today. Unions were the muscle that built the post-WWII middle class, and booming economy, and elected officials who talked to each other and did stuff. This poster tells it all: "United We Bargain. Divided We Beg." It's the only way that's ever worked. Since the 1980s we've been begging.

Here's my point. On July 4th every American celebrates the Revolutionary War, the signing of the Declaration of Independence, and the beginning of our nation. It is not a day limited to the descendants of those who fought in that War -- such as the Daughters of the American Revolution. We all celebrate, we all remember.

No, I'm not saying everyone needs to go to a labor union's Labor Day picnic, anymore than everyone should go to a DAR meeting on July 4th. But on both days, I believe, it contributes to our nation's civic health for all of us to reflect upon the debt we owe to those who have gone before us -- along with the ways in which the economic and other problems we have as a nation today are a product of our failure to remember, and apply, the lessons we should have learned when labor unions were a partner with business in building one of the greatest periods in our history.

From 1945 until the 1980s unions were strong. The rich paid substantial taxes, and income inequality was nowhere nearly as stark as it is today. The economy was booming; union workers were paid well, and spent freely, which increased the profits of business, created a demand for more jobs, enabled parents to afford college for their kids, and kept things humming. As a result, both the rich and their workers did better than they otherwise would have.

We need to realize, for example, that what is called a "raise" in the minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.50 is not a raise at all -- it is merely bringing the minimum wage back up to the level of buying power it had in 1968.

When Wall Street and big business treat the human mothers and fathers who are their workers as a "cost center," and expense item -- even putting aside the human consequences for a moment -- the resulting decline in the economy, as those workers lose buying power, ends up harming the rich as well as the poor.

Unions, the ability of workers to bargain collectively rather than individually, and to be paid at least a living wage, has always been the only way to maintain any economy -- especially one like ours that is 70% dependent upon consumer spending.

OK, enough of all that. Here are some pictures from a great Iowa City Labor Day.

Here is what the shelter and the grounds looked like when I arrived on my bicycle. Tom Jacobs took this picture; the others are ones I took. Congressman Dave Loebsack had a lot of Labor Day events to hit yesterday, and so was allowed to speak and run before all the food had even been set out.

But the food was soon laid out on a table as long as the shelter house for these folks who like to talk almost more than they like to eat. Some stayed out in the sun, but most gathered at the shelter house tables, as I did.

One of the continuing highlights of the event most years, as it was this year, was the very generous provision of live music throughout the afternoon provided by Pigs and Clover, otherwise known as Matt and Jamie Kearney. They have one of the greatest collection of union songs I've ever heard, great voices, a driving guitar and drum rhythm, and a good sense of fun.

To give you a sense of the music (and the crowd noise) here is a one-minute excerpt from their rendition of "Mean Winds" (taken by me with an iPhone):



As a special event, our Johnson County Attorney, Janet Lyness, took and passed the ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) Ice Bucket Challenge executed by her daughter.

All in all it was a really great day.