When It Was About Labor

 For many Americans, today—Labor Day—is the end of summer. Some are enjoying their last picnics, barbecues, trip to the beach or other warm-weather outdoor activities of the season. Still others are taking advantage of “sales”* in department stores and online venues.

But this day wasn’t always a day of rest, relaxation or revelry. The first Labor Day was observed in New York City on 5 September 1882–interestingly, the day after Thomas Edison flipped the switch that turned on New York City’s first electric street lights—and the “Times” sign in what would become the eponymous square (known, at that time, as Longacre).

The earliest Labor Days, in contrast to more recent ones, were serious, sometimes solemn and even feisty occasions. They highlighted the terrible conditions under which many laborers—who included women and immigrants—worked. 

Factory and business owners, understandably, used the technological advances of the Industrial Revolution to increase productivity—and profits. The more avaricious entrepreneurs also found opportunities to exploit workers. There was no minimum wage or overtime pay. Worse, there were no laws mandating safety or other standards in workplaces, and little if any recourse for injured or crippled workers.

The early Labor Days, therefore, were more likely to include rallies, protests and parades, like this one:

Unemployed workers, many of whom lost their jobs in the wake of the previous year’s stock market panic, descended on Washington for Labor Day 1894.

*—Too often, holiday sales are scams:  Prices are jacked up before the holidays and the discounts simply bring prices back to, or near, earlier levels.

It Takes All Kinds

 Five months ago, I moved into a senior apartment complex. (But I’m still in midlife, dammit! I don’t have a complex!😉) 

Some neighbors don’t know my name, but they know I’m “the lady who rides a bike.” A few know about the 105 mile ride I took last week. One thing they don’t know, however, is that it’s not the first “century” I’ve ever done.

Some of my neighbors use walkers or wheelchairs. So I guess it’s not surprising that they look at me with awe or envy, as if I’m an Olympic athlete.  I am sure that others, however, see me this way:

Not Too Famous For Justice, I Hope

 And the big bicycle-related story isn’t about a race or someone who embarked on a world tour to recover from a brush with death or some other life-altering event.

Rather, it’s about a crash. It made headlines mainly because one of its victims is well-known, at least to people—and there are many, including yours truly—who follow the sport he played for a living.

The fact that I not only know about him but also know enough about hockey to appreciate what a great player he was doesn’t make me sadder than if it had happened to someone less famous. Rather, the way he—and his brother—lost their lives while cycling along a rural road in southern New Jersey leaves me even more enraged at the person responsible for  it than I might be if the crash could have been blamed on, say, weather or something else out of his, and the cyclists’ control.

Johnny Gaudreau, a star left wing for the National Hockey League’s Columbus Blue Jackets, and his brother Matthew were pedaling along County Road 551, a two-lane road, in Oldmans Township at around 8:30 last night. An SUV moved toward the center of the road to pass them.

The driver of a Jeep Grand Cherokee wanted to pass the SUV.  He pulled to its right—where the Gaudreau brothers were cycling.

They were pronounced dead at scene. Police took the Jeep’s driver—Sean M. Higgins—into custody. He failed a sobriety test and admitted he’d had “5 to 6” beers before getting behind the wheel of his Jeep. Higgins told police that his alcohol consumption contributed to his impatience and reckless driving.

He is detained in Salem County Correctional Facility  and will have a pre-trial detention hearing on 5 September. He has been charged with two counts of death by auto.

I hope that his punishment is based on his disregard for two human lives and not respecting the rights of two cyclist and not merely on the celebrity of one of his victims. Even more importantly, I hope that a sentence commensurate with his crime sets a precedent for other drivers who kill cyclists. Better yet, I would like to neither nor hear about any more such incidents.