Happy International Workers Day (aka May Day)!

Mother Jones on her 100th birthday, May 1, 1930.

And now, a word from Mother Jones

Mary Harris "Mother" Jones (1830-1930) celebrated her 100th birthday party at the Burgess Farm in Adelphi, Maryland on May 1, 1930.

A newsreel cameraman was present and a short "talkie" was made of "the Grand Old Champion of Labor."

"And I long to see the day when Labor will have the destinies of the nation in her own hands and she will stand a united force and show the world what the workers can do." Listen:

Thanks to Con Carbon for the tip. Learn more about Mother Jones on the web.

More on May Day from the AFL-CIO Blog:

Today as we celebrate May Day and the birthday of legendary labor advocate Mother Jones, workers and other progressives must think about how we use our values to build a struggle for human sustainability, including a sustainable environment, sustainable jobs, sustainable health and a sustainable economy.

Stewart Acuff, an assistant to AFL-CIO President John Sweeney, says [...] we need a series of actions to make the global economy work for every person, Acuff says, including:

• Tapping renewable sources of energy. But to tap this energy requires skilled crafts people to build the windmills and turbines and build and install the turbines that can be turned by the tides of the sea.
• Creating good green jobs that help save the environment and provide a decent living. Sustainable jobs that help preserve a sustainable environment.
• Providing universal health care.
• Renewing the freedom to join unions by passing the Employee Free Choice Act.

Here's a May Day message from International Trade Union Confederation's (ITUC) General Secretary Guy Ryder: