https://libcom.org/history/blood-coal-colorado-strike-1927-patrick-murfin
Today marks the first day of the great Colorado coal strike of 1927 where the IWW industrial Union led more than 10,000 coal miners to shut down the state’s coal industry in order to get Union recognition, a $1.50 wage increase ($7.50/hour total), Union weigh men (miners were paid by the amount and weight of coal they dug, and employer-hired weigh men would often lie to swindle workers), payment for “dead work” (digging through rock that did not contain coal, installing beams and other safety measures to make sure workers didn’t die, etc.), and the recognition of a “pit committee”, a council made of workers and employer reps to solve labor disputes.
This led to mass harassment and arrests by police and employers, leading up to the first Columbine massacre, where six died and dozens were injured as state troopers at the command of the governor beat, gassed, and fired at workers with rifles, machine guns, and hand grenades.
Let this serve as a reminder that labor rights have always been bought with blood, that employers have been and are willing to take drastic actions to maintain their power, and that it takes powerful, radical action to fight back and win.
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The perspective of his old friends and teachers.
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I even remember about a black girl saying he was always nice to her and she though he was attractive, but I didn't find this story again.
I'm not trying to say he wasn't a racist because he had a black friend, but it's interesting to me since he didn't hang out with other ethnic groups in Littleton.
