Green Labor Journal - Working for a Substainable Future

National Workers Memorial

NLC celebrates Workers Memorial Day, April 28, 2010

By Tom Kriger Mar 25, 2010

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Silver Spring, MD ─ On January 20, 2010, the National Labor College announced that construction had begun  on the  National Workers Memorial, to be located on the College’s campus in Silver Spring, Maryland.  The Memorial will be completed in time to commemorate Workers Memorial Day, April 28, 2010, held annually in memory of workers killed on the job. For additional information and to support the Memorial, contact www.nlc.edu and go to the "Support NLC" link.

The Memorial includes more than ten thousand bricks and scores of granite benches and pavers.  Over time, as co-workers and loved-ones sponsor remembrances, these bricks will be replaced with ones engraved with the names of  union members whose memory they have chosen to honor.

Support for the Memorial has been enthusiastic, and as word about the project spreads remembrances have started to pour in.  One local chose to remember a steelworker who was electrocuted on the job and an elevator constructor who fell five stories to his death.  Co-workers from a transit local sponsored the memory of a bus driver who was crushed by her own bus, and yet another local sought to remember a government rescue worker who was crushed in a mine rescue.  There are many more stories of courage and loss that will be commemorated at the Memorial.
 
Contributions to the Memorial mean much more than the brick and granite structures being constructed. Each sponsorship serves as a reminder of the thousands of workers every year whose lives are lost while on the job.  Brick-by-brick and bench by bench, the Memorial serves to build awareness of the human toll caused by unsafe working conditions.  Memorial funds will also support safety and health and other educational programs that will provide union members and their leaders with the tools and knowledge to publicize and improve workplace safety.

"Pray for the dead, but fight like hell for the living." - Mother Jones

Mary Harris "Mother" Jones, who died in 1930 just a couple of miles away from the National Labor College campus, captured the spirit of workplace safety activism with these few passionate words. The National Labor College hopes to continue that spirit in the National Workers Memorial.

On this quiet spot, the labor movement is building a place to pause and remember the lives of fallen brothers and sisters. Through their contributions, individuals and groups alike will be given the opportunity to support a permanent remembrance, and also to help the labor movement “fight for the living” by supporting the College’s educational programs for the future.

For a contribution of $125, contributors may honor a fallen brother or sister, someone who died in the struggle to build their union, or, like Mother Jones, someone who made important contributions to the labor movement (these individuals will be remembered in a separate area of the Memorial).  Each brick will bear the name of the deceased, the date of death and the name of their union or occupation. The College will keep track of the location of a given brick and publish a directory of the names.

Groups or individuals may also sponsor engraved slate pavers bordering the Memorial (for a contribution of $2,000) that commemorate historic or significant events – like the Triangle Fire or the Sago Mine disaster. In addition, granite benches within the Memorial provide special opportunities for whole categories or occupations of fallen workers to be remembered. These sections, meant for those who gave their lives working in danger, such as miners, those exposed to asbestos, or others whose occupations endanger their lives or their health, are available for $10,000.

Contributions will support the cost of erecting, maintaining and administering the Memorial. A portion of these funds will also support the annual Workers’ Memorial Day Ceremony, held in April at the National Labor College. Remaining funds will support the College’s educational programs, including the NLC’s Health and Safety curriculum.

To participate, individuals or unions  may contribute online or mail the NLC Workers Memorial Request Form along with your check or money order made out to “National Labor College” at: NLC Workers Memorial * 10000 New Hampshire Avenue * Silver Spring, MD 20903

National Labor College
10000 New Hampshire Ave., Silver Spring, MD 20903
Phone: (301) 431-6400
www.NLC.edu