Working Class History

#OtD toots & podcast. History isn't made by kings or politicians, it's made by billions of ordinary people. Supported and made possible by you: https://liberapay.com/workingclasshistory/

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Last Notes

2026-10-26 20:11:13 UTC

#OtD 26 Oct 1881 communist Indigenous activist Dolores Cacuango was born in Ecuador. She took part in several strikes and uprisings, the landless and indigenous movements, and fought against sexual abuse of Indigenous women by hacienda bosses https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9863/dolores-cacuango-born

2026-10-26 13:46:19 UTC

Our limited edition 2027 wall calendar is out now. Just 800 copies, with a historical entry for every day and photos of ordinary people who made history. Global shipping, and your purchase supports people's history research: https://shop.workingclasshistory.com/products/wch-wall-calendar

2026-10-24 16:41:18 UTC

#OtD 24 Oct 1975 90% of women in Iceland went on general strike for equality with men. Working women stayed home, and house workers refused to cook, clean and look after children. Today Iceland has the lowest gender inequality in the world https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9692/1975-icelandic-women's-strike

2026-10-24 15:56:36 UTC

#OtD 24 Oct 1940 the 40-hour work week came into effect in America under Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, the result of decades of militant working-class struggle and organisation https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9690/40-hour-work-week

2026-10-18 20:31:51 UTC

#OtD 18 Oct 1943 Catalan anarchist André Respaut was arrested by the Gestapo after working with the French resistance. Remaining silent through torture, he was eventually sent to a concentration camp, where he survived to liberation https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9047/gestapo-arrest-andré-respaut

2026-10-17 21:56:16 UTC

#OtD 17 Oct 1961 scores of Algerian demonstrators were massacred by police in Paris after a curfew was ordered for Algerians and Muslims. Over 200 were beaten to death and robbed by police and thrown in the River Seine https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8939/paris-massacre-of-1961

2026-10-14 22:11:13 UTC

#OtD 14 Oct 1907 revolutionary autoworker Aniela Wolberg was born in Poland. Moving to France, she was deported back to Poland because of her agitation at the factory. Later travelled to Spain during the civil war to fight the fascists https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8618/aniela-wolberg

2026-10-12 20:11:13 UTC

#OtD 12 Oct 1919 150 Royal Navy sailors mutinied and broke out of their ships at Port Edgar upon hearing they were being sent to the Baltic to fight against the Russian Revolution. The desertion prevented the First Destroyer Flotilla from departing https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8435/150-royal-navy-sailors-mutiny

2026-10-11 15:26:27 UTC

#OtD 11 Oct 1884 one of the longest-burning fires in the world began when striking miners set fire to the New Straitsville mine in Ohio. Miners walked out in Jun and were replaced by scabs, so strikers set mines on fire. It is still burning today https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/11074/new-straitsville-mine-fire

2026-10-10 12:41:40 UTC

#OtD 10 or 19 Oct 1609 pioneering English revolutionary Gerrard Winstanley was born. He was a farmworker and the primary theoretician of the Diggers, or True Levellers, during the English Civil War who took over enclosed lands and farmed them https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8239/gerrard-winstanley-born

2026-10-09 21:31:29 UTC

#OtD 9 Oct 1945 the UK Labour govt defended its jailing of 226 Spanish Civil War and anti-Nazi resistance fighters, describing them as "members of an enemy paramilitary organisation". Some killed themselves, others were deported to Spain for execution https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/10945/labour-imprisons-anti-fascists

2026-10-06 15:36:27 UTC

#OtD 6 October 1991 trans woman, Sònia Rescalvo Zafra, was brutally murdered by neo-Nazis in Barcelona. Her murder was a turning point for the treatment of hate crimes in Barcelona, leading to the creation of a specialised prosecutor's office https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8004/assassination-of-sònia-rescalvo-zafra

2026-10-05 22:11:36 UTC

[NOW RESOLVED - THANKS] Hey all, we are trying to find the location of the railway station in Lawrence, Massachusetts, where police attacked strikers' children on 24 January 1912. It looks like there were 2 stations at this time, Lawrence North & South, so would be great if anyone could find which one, and where it was!

2026-10-03 15:26:31 UTC

#OtD 3 Oct 1935 Ethiopia was invaded by Mussolini's Italy, who committed countless atrocities, including the using poison gas and concentration camps. Many Black men and women came to the country to fight https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/10242/ethiopia-invaded-by-italy

2026-10-02 21:11:34 UTC

#OtD 2 Oct 1766 the Nottingham Great Cheese Riot began. Angry at the excessive price of cheese, a mob formed who seized it and began wheeling or carrying the cheeses away, bowling over the mayor with a cheese. The army put down rioting 2 days later https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9225/great-cheese-riot-of-nottingham

2026-10-01 20:56:23 UTC

#OtD 1 Oct 1995 cleaners at Hillingdon hospital had their pay cut. 55 mainly South Asian women workers refused to sign the new contract and went on strike at which point they were sacked. After 5 years of struggle they won compensation https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8152/hospital-cleaners-strike

2026-09-30 19:41:30 UTC

#OtD 30 Sep 1953 British communist boxer, Len Johnson, went for a drink at the Old Abbey Taphouse in Manchester, but was refused service because he was Black. Soon after, 200 people picketed the pub until the landlord agreed to stop discriminating. https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/11128/len-johnson-resists-the-colour-bar

2026-09-29 21:56:37 UTC

#OtD 29 Sep 1943 11-year-old partisan Gennaro Capuozzo was killed in action fighting against German Nazi forces in Naples as he threw handgrenades at German tanks. Part of a successful four-day uprising against Nazi occupation. Learn more in our podcast: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/e77-80-italian-resistance/

2026-09-29 16:26:42 UTC

#OtD 29 Sep 1920 Chilean anarchist poet and @nprofile…zqqd member, José Domingo Gómez Rojas, died at just 24 years old after having been arrested, tortured, and allegedly gone mad. More than 40,000 people attended his funeral. Learn more about the union in our pod: workingclasshistory.com/tag/iww/

2026-09-29 14:26:22 UTC

Hey all, for our map we are trying to locate the old Hormel meat plant in Ottumwa in 1986. Can anyone figure out exactly whereabouts it was?

2026-09-28 21:16:47 UTC

Got a new query for any Spanish speakers, as you were all so helpful earlier! Would absolutely love to find the location of this building, the Centro de Estudios Germinal in San José, Costa Rica, in 1913. Any assistance would be much appreciated!

2026-09-28 18:41:27 UTC

(Edit- NOW RESOLVED. THANKS ALL!) Any Spanish speakers, or people who are good at reading old cursive, we are trying to identify as precisely as possible the birthplace this person. This is their birth certificate (page 8 here: https://web.archive.org/web/20190626145134/http://www.photographers.it/articoli/cd_capa/img/taino.pdf ). Many thanks for any assistance!

2026-09-27 07:41:37 UTC

#OtD 27 Sep 1936 1000 uniformed fascist Blackshirts led by Oswald Mosley in Leeds, UK, were confronted by 30,000 anti-fascist locals who attacked them, pelted them with stones, hitting Mosley, and drowned out speeches by singing The Red Flag https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9965/battle-of-holbeck-moor

2026-09-26 14:11:26 UTC

#OtD 26 Sep 1944 Nazis and their Italian fascist henchmen murdered 31 partisans in the town of Bassano del Grappa, Italy. Partisans had handed themselves in after being told those who surrendered would not be prosecuted. More in our pod: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/e77-80-italian-resistance/

2026-09-25 14:56:41 UTC

#OtD 25 Sep 1945 Italian resistance militant, Nelly Pelliccia, died of typhus, aged 20. She took part in partisan activities in Carrara throughout the Nazi occupation following the fall of the Italian fascist regime. More about the resistance in our pod: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/e77-80-italian-resistance/

2026-09-25 07:11:15 UTC

#OtD 25 Sep 1952 influential Black author, activist, and feminist theorist, bell hooks was born in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. She wrote over 30 books during her life, often critiquing what she termed the imperialist white supremacist capitalist patriarchy https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/12599/bell-hooks-born

2026-09-24 21:41:30 UTC

#OtD 24 Sep 1883 during his Address to the National Convention of Colored Men in Kentucky, Frederick Douglass criticised trade unions that refused to organise Black workers. But most unions continued to be whites-only, with exceptions like the @nprofile…zqqd. https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9696/f.-douglass-criticises-unions-over-racism

2026-09-23 21:31:38 UTC

Brighton people, any assistance much appreciated! We are trying to find the location of the Freethought Hall in Brighton, UK, in 1889. Any advice would be much appreciated!

2026-09-23 14:01:30 UTC

London folks! For our map we are trying to identify the location of what used to be number 24, Corporation Buildings in Clerkenwell. We found this map of the old buildings so it's clear what block it was on, however, we can't tell which one was number 24. Can anyone help us identify the correct one?

2026-09-20 18:41:37 UTC

#OtD 20 Sep 1878 American author Upton Sinclair was born. He often wrote about the everyday lives and struggles of working class people and his investigative exposés written as fiction had many concrete results in terms of improving conditions https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9328/upton-sinclair

2026-09-20 12:01:35 UTC

#OtD 20 Sep 1978 Ford workers in the UK sparked the "winter of discontent" when 15,000 of them walked out against a Labour govt-union pay cap. They stayed out till Nov, winning a 17% increase, and 1m other workers followed them https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9527/ford-workers'-strike-in-the-uk

2026-09-09 12:56:33 UTC

#OtD 9 Sep 1739 the Stono slave rebellion began in South Carolina, the largest uprising of enslaved people in the mainland British colonies. 23 people seized weapons, burned plantations and freed others until a militia repressed them https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/10949/stono-revolt

2026-09-07 22:46:45 UTC

#OtD 7 Sep 1934 anti-fascists hung a banner atop the BBC, advertising a counter-rally against Oswald Mosley and his British Union of Fascists. The BBC had Mosley on to promote his Nazi views and rally. Even so, over 100,000 locals drove out the fascist https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/10756/bbc-anti-fascist-banner-drop

2026-09-07 19:11:07 UTC

#OtD 7 Sep 1976 Ian Davies, a gay social worker in London, won reinstatement after being demoted for a "gross indecency" conviction. First 25 colleagues walked out, then 1300 workers said they would strike and the council relented. Learn more in our book: https://shop.workingclasshistory.com/products/be-gay-do-crime-everyday-acts-of-queer-resistance-and-rebellion

2026-09-03 19:26:09 UTC

#OtD 3 Sep 1791 post-revolutionary France completed its new penal code. It became the first Western European country to decriminalise homosexuality, as it no longer made any mention of prohibitions against sodomy in private. More about the rev here: https://shop.workingclasshistory.com/en-gb/collections/books/french-revolution

2026-08-25 09:11:34 UTC

#OtD 25 Aug 1944 a group of 32 Spanish and eight French resistance fighters tackled an entire German column of 1300 in La Madeleine, France. The battle lasted until the next day, ending when the Nazis surrendered, and their commander killed himself https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9715/french-resistance-tackles-german-column

2026-08-25 04:41:24 UTC

#OtD 25 Aug 1921 the Battle of Blair Mountain, the largest armed rebellion in the US since the civil war, began. 10,000 striking West Virginia coal miners battled with armed strikebreakers following the killing of miners, until disarmed by federal troops https://workingclasshistory.com/2018/06/09/wch-e7-the-west-virginia-mine-wars-1902-1922/

2026-08-23 16:11:33 UTC

#OtD 23 Aug 1924 French resistance fighter Madeleine Riffaud was born. On her 20th birthday in 1944, she, three other fighters and a train driver successfully captured a Nazi supply train complete with 80 soldiers on board using grenades and fireworks https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9542/madeleine-riffaud-born

2026-08-23 12:31:46 UTC

#OtD 23 Aug 1851 a violent riot broke out in Sydney, Australia, when police arrested a sailor wearing women's clothing. Hundreds attacked police officers and police stations, freeing all prisoners along the way. We've produced this poster in celebration: https://shop.workingclasshistory.com/collections/all/agustin-huarte?sort_by=created-ascending

2026-08-19 06:31:37 UTC

#OtD 19 Aug 1953 PM Mohammad Mosaddegh of Iran was overthrown in a coup organised by the CIA on behalf of the British and American governments. Mossadegh had instituted social reforms and planned to nationalise the British-owned oil fields https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9072/mohamed-mossadegh-overthrown

2026-08-17 09:41:27 UTC

#OtD 17 Aug 1918 women workers at Willesden bus garage started a wildcat strike for a pay rise and equal pay with men. By 23 Aug about 18,000 women out of the 27,000 in the industry had stopped work. On 25 Aug they got their pay increase. Learn more: https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8860/london-women's-wildcat-strike

2026-08-17 08:56:38 UTC

#OtD 17 Aug 1945 Indonesia declared independence after the defeat of Japan in WWII. The Netherlands, which had colonised the country for 350 years, began a four-year war, which they oddly justified as a continuation of the WWII fight for "democracy" https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8861/indonesian-independence

2026-08-16 23:01:25 UTC

#OtD 16 Aug 1819 the Peterloo massacre took place when British cavalry charge into a crowd of 60,000-80,000 working-class people demanding the right to vote. 15 were murdered and up to 700 injured, including many women. Learn more in our podcast: https://workingclasshistory.com/2018/11/07/e15-the-peterloo-massacre-with-mike-leigh/

2026-08-14 15:46:44 UTC

#OtD 14 Aug 1886 50 women and girls working in the L Candee Rubber Boot Company factory in New Haven, Connecticut, walked out on strike over excessive working temperatures. Management had refused to open the windows "for fear of damage to the stock" https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/7748/l-candee-rubber-heat-strike

2026-08-11 13:26:33 UTC

#OtD 11 Aug 1964 18-year-old Scottish anarchist Stuart Christie was arrested in Madrid, Spain with explosives to assassinate dictator Franco. He was wearing a kilt, which confused the Argentinian press, who described him as "a Scottish transvestite" https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8273/stuart-christie-arrested

2026-08-10 20:11:15 UTC

10 Aug 1944 15 Italian resistance partisans were executed in Milan's Piazzale Loreto by order of the Gestapo and their bodies put on display. A few months later Mussolini was executed by partisans and hung up in the same square. Learn more in our pod: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/e77-80-italian-resistance/

2026-08-09 22:11:21 UTC

#OtD 9 Aug 1956 20,000 women in Pretoria, South Africa, marched against pass laws: apartheid laws curtailing freedom of movement for Black and Indian people. A wave of civil disobedience followed. The day is commemorated in South Africa as Women's Day https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/10880/south-africa-women's-day

2026-08-08 15:26:16 UTC

#OtD 8 Aug 1883 over 3000 people attended a benefit ball and concert for striking telegraphers in NYC's Madison Square Garden. 800 of the strikers, fighting for equal pay for men and women and an eight-hour day, led the procession into the ballroom https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/10770/telegraphers-strike-benefit

2026-08-07 20:11:28 UTC

#OtD 7 Aug 1936 rebels near Madrid conducted a ceremonial "execution" of the Monument of the Sacred Heart. It was shot by a firing squad of working-class people who had risen up against a fascist military coup backed by the Church. More in our podcast: https://workingclasshistory.com/2020/06/17/e39-the-spanish-civil-war-an-introduction/

2026-08-06 16:07:08 UTC

E125: Riot dogs - Negro Matapacos - New episode of the Working Class History podcast: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/e125-riot-dogs/

2026-08-06 05:56:33 UTC

#OtD 6 Aug 1945 the US dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, slaughtering tens of thousands of civilians, despite believing that Japan was about to surrender, which was noted by multiple US officials https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/10593/u.s.-drops-atomic-bomb-on-hiroshima

2026-08-02 21:56:18 UTC

#OtD 2 Aug 1894 work resumed at the Pullman factory after its strike was defeated. US troops had killed 34 and injured and arrested many others, the AFL refused to call sympathy action, and the union further isolated itself by excluding Black members https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/12475/pullman-strike-ends

2026-08-02 21:11:33 UTC

#OtD 2 Aug 1901 Jewish revolutionary and author Ida Mett was born in Smarhoń, Belarus. She was involved in the Russian revolution and was a member of the anarchist-communist Dielo Truda (Workers' Cause) group from 1925 to 1928 https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9162/ida-mett-born

2026-08-02 05:56:07 UTC

#OtD 2 Aug 1980 a bomb exploded at Bologna train station, killing 85 people and injuring over 200. Carried out by neo-fascists, it was part of the Strategy of Tension, a state programme to carry out attacks and blame them on the left https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9171/bologna-bombing

2026-07-29 04:41:24 UTC

#OtD 29 Jul 1962 fascist Oswald Mosley tried to march with the Union Movement in Manchester, UK. However, he was attacked by anti-fascists and had to be rescued by police. A Mosley speech later was drowned out by a crowd of anti-fascists. More info: https://www.patreon.com/posts/e37b-62-group-in-34110286

2026-07-28 20:41:29 UTC

#OtD 28 Jul 1985 Anti-Fascist Action (AFA) was launched at a meeting at @ConwayHall in London, UK. Its dedication to "physical and ideological opposition" to fascism would see it drive numerous far-right groups off the streets. This is a short history: https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/10021/anti-fascist-action-founded

2026-07-28 07:26:21 UTC

#OtD 28 Jul 1932 the US government sent in the army to attack WWI vets and their families with tanks, fixed bayonets, teargas and sabres, killing three, when vets marched demanding wartime bonuses they were promised. https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/10018/bonus-army-attacked

2026-07-27 18:41:05 UTC

#OtD 27 Jul 1918 labour organiser and prominent socialist leader Ginger Goodwin was murdered in Cumberland, Canada. As a conscientious objector to WWI, he fled conscription with others by hiding in the mountains but was hunted down by an ex-policeman https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9910/ginger-goodwin-murdered

2026-07-26 13:41:17 UTC

#OtD 26 Jul 1963 military scientists released harmful bacteria on the London Underground as part of a secret biological warfare experiment. It was just one of over 750 secret experiments by the UK govt using biological or chemical agents on the public https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9833/tube-germ-warfare-experiment

2026-07-25 07:26:14 UTC

#OtD 25 Jul 1898 the US invaded Puerto Rico, claiming to free it from Spanish colonial rule. Instead they occupied it and gave citizenship to Spanish landowners, protecting them from landless rebels, and handing land to sugar corporations. Learn more: https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9748/us-invades-puerto-rico

2026-07-22 20:46:14 UTC

#OtD 22 July 1886 the brewery workers' union fighting against working hours of 16-18 per day won all of its demands. They won free beer, a union shop, freedom to live anywhere (not just in the brewery itself), a 10-hour day, 6-day week. https://shop.workingclasshistory.com/collections/no-beer-no-work

2026-07-22 18:11:38 UTC

#OtD 22 Jul 1965 postal workers in Montréal and Vancouver walked off the job on a wildcat strike, which spread to over 30 cities across Canada. At 10,000 strong, it was one of the largest wildcat strikes in Canadian history, and it ended victoriously https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9486/postal-workers-strike-in-canada

2026-07-22 13:41:25 UTC

#OtD 22 Jul 2005 civil servants in Tonga went on strike for pay rises. The strike incapacitated the government and grew to include many other public sector employees, resulting in the most significant challenge to the island's monarchy in its history https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9488/civil-servants-in-tonga-strike

2026-07-22 11:11:12 UTC

#OtD 22 Jul 2011 neo-Nazi Anders Breivik killed 77 and injured 242 in separate bomb and gun terrorist attacks in Norway. Many of those killed were children at a Labour Party Youth camp, murdered as he screamed "You are going to die today, Marxists!" https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9489/neo-nazi-terrorist-attack-in-norway

2026-07-22 07:11:12 UTC

#OtD 22 Jul 1913 after German parliament approved a huge military bill, Rosa Luxemburg gave a speech saying that parliamentarianism wasn't enough to defend workers and that political mass strikes were a vital weapon in our arsenal. More by and about Rosa: https://shop.workingclasshistory.com/collections/all/rosa-luxemburg

2026-07-21 17:56:14 UTC

#OtD 21 Jul 1945 Irish Women Worker's Union staged a laundry strike affecting many of Dublin's hotels. Hospital laundry workers were exempt from the strike action. The strike lasted 14 weeks and ended in victory for the workers https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9387/laundry-women-strike

2026-07-20 05:11:07 UTC

#OtD 20 Jul 2001 Carlo Giuliani, a 23-year-old Italian history student and activist, was shot in the face and run over by police during protests against the G8 summit. The European Court of Human Rights absolved Italy of Giuliani's death in 2009 https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9282/carlo-giuliani-killed-by-police

2026-07-17 05:56:37 UTC

#OtD 17 Jul 2014 Eric Garner, an unarmed Black man, was choked to death by white NYPD officers while arresting him for allegedly selling loose cigarettes. The event sparked protests across the US as part of the #BlackLivesMatter movement https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8896/eric-garner-murdered-by-nypd

2026-07-15 17:16:48 UTC

#OtD 15 Jul 1954 the right-wing dictatorship of general Francisco Franco amended the 1933 vagrancy law to criminalise homosexuality. Over the next 25 years, around 5,000 LGBT+ people would be imprisoned and subjected to brutal sexual violence https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8682/franco-criminalises-homosexuality

2026-07-14 22:26:41 UTC

#OtD 14 Jul 1912 influential populist US folk musician Woody Guthrie was born. Guthrie chronicled the difficult conditions faced by working class Oklahomans during the Dust Bowl and spoke out against class inequality and fascism https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8576/woody-guthrie-born

2026-07-08 22:11:32 UTC

#OtD 8 Jul 1832 in Chirton, UK, scuffles broke out between police and striking miners. Miner and father of six, Cuthbert Skipsey, was killed by a policeman. His youngest son would grow up to become a nationally-renowned working-class poet. Learn more: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/wcl-e2-joseph-skipsey-poet-and-pitman/

2026-07-05 17:56:05 UTC

#OtD 5 Jul 1948 the UK National Health Service (NHS) was founded to provide free universal healthcare. The Labour Party started permitting charges in 1949 and it has been under attack ever since. It's up to us, the working class to defend it https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/10531/foundation-of-the-nhs

2026-07-05 13:26:05 UTC

#OtD 5 Jul 1971 a Led Zeppelin concert in Milan turned into riots when police attacked hundreds of young people who were demanding to be let in for free. It was part of a movement called autoriduzione, where workers collectively demanded lower prices. https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/10533/riot-at-led-zeppelin-gig

2026-07-02 07:56:09 UTC

#OtD 2 Jul 1977 in London, the Lewisham 21 Defence Committee held a demonstration following police raids on Black people. 200 fascists held a counterprotest where they threw bags of caustic soda at the marchers https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9196/anti-racist-clashes-in-lewisham

2026-07-01 21:41:15 UTC

#OtD 1 Jul 1943 gay Dutch anti-Nazi resistance fighter Willem Arondeus was executed after attacking the Amsterdam ID registry. Before his death Willem asked a friend to testify after the war that "homosexuals are not cowards" https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8082/willem-arondeus-executed

2026-06-30 17:26:27 UTC

#OtD 30 Jun 1861 the worst night of rioting occurred during the Lambing Flat riots in New South Wales, Australia, when a mob of up to 3000 white freelance gold miners attacked Chinese miners and drove them from the area, seriously injuring 250 https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/10300/lambing-flat-riots

2026-06-29 19:16:29 UTC

#OtD 29 Jun 1898 Michael Schwab, German-American labour organiser, Haymarket defendant, and anarchist, died from tuberculosis contracted whilst in prison. He was framed along with seven others for organising for the 8-hour day https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/10110/michael-schwab-dies

2026-06-27 19:56:01 UTC

#OtD 27 Jun 1905 after a sailor was shot for objecting to the rotten food on the Russian ship Potemkin, the crew mutinied, shot their officers, raised the red flag, and formed a council to run the ship, with an anarchist as chair https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9919/potemkin-mutiny

2026-06-27 10:11:26 UTC

#OtD 27 Jun 1869 Emma Goldman, the legendary Jewish writer, feminist, birth control advocate, and anarchist was born in what is now Lithuania. Some of her works, and items celebrating her life available here to help fund our work: https://shop.workingclasshistory.com/collections/all/emma-goldman

2026-06-27 08:11:09 UTC

#OtD 27 Jun 1968 police raided the Atelier Populaire, the Popular Workshop which made the iconic posters of the May 68 revolt. The artists took their press before the police could, and so continued their work. We reproduced some of their art: https://shop.workingclasshistory.com/collections/may-68

2026-06-25 21:41:06 UTC

#OtD 25 Jun 1942 French press denounced the Zazous: young people who embraced African American swing and jazz music and style and fought against fascists in the streets. More info in our podcast episode on anti-Nazi youth movements: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/72-edelweiss-pirates-swing-kids/

2026-06-24 16:01:34 UTC

#OtD 24 Jun 1943 a battle broke out within the segregated US military in the British village of Bamber Bridge. White military police opened fire on Black service personnel after they were unhappy about local residents supporting Black troops. https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/7894/battle-of-bamber-bridge

2026-06-21 09:26:46 UTC

#OtD 21 Jun 1908 "Women's Sunday" took place in London when 300,000 women descended on Hyde Park to demonstrate in favour of women's suffrage - the largest political gathering to date in the park https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9395/women's-sunday

2026-06-21 08:26:13 UTC

#OtD 21 Jun 1964 three American civil rights activists, James Earl Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael 'Mickey' Schwerner, were murdered by police and KKK members in Mississippi https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9401/mississippi-civil-rights-murders

2026-06-20 20:41:16 UTC

#OtD 20 June 1944 43 Italian partisans and civilians were shot by a Nazi firing squad in Fondotoce, near Milan. One partisan, Carlo Suzzi (pictured), amazingly survived and waited under the bodies of his comrades until nightfall to escape. More info: https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9288/fondotoce-massacre

2026-06-20 04:11:30 UTC

20 June 1967: Muhammad Ali refuses draft

2026-06-12 12:11:09 UTC

#OtD 12 Jun 2009 ISS cleaning workers at the UK School of Oriental and African Studies fighting for better pay were called to a bogus "staff meeting" where they were ambushed by immigration officials. Nine were then deported, but organising continued https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8412/SOAS-9-deportations

2026-06-11 06:41:31 UTC

#OtD 11 June 1936 Oswald Mosley's British Union of Fascists attempted to hold an impromptu rally in Tonypandy, Wales. 6,000 locals forced the fascists to flee in what would become known as the 'Battle of De Winton Field' https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8322/battle-of-de-winton-field

2026-06-07 08:11:44 UTC

#OtD 7 Jun 2020 the brother of a Seattle police officer drove his car at high speed into a Black Lives Matter protest in the city, then shot a Black protester, Dan Gregory, who tried to protect the crowd. The driver avoided jail, getting only probation https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/12563/anti-blm-attack

2026-06-05 12:41:02 UTC

#OtD 5 Jun 1948 Oswald Mosley's fascist Union Movement was completely routed in Brighton by Jewish anti-fascists from the 43 Group. Leader of the demo, Jeffrey Hamm, ended up in hospital with a broken jaw. For more on the 43 Group listen to our podcast: https://workingclasshistory.com/2020/02/17/e35-37-the-43-group/

2026-06-02 07:11:38 UTC

#OtD 2 Jun 1986 during the Wapping printers' dispute in East London, paper supplies at nearby Convoy's Wharf were hit by mystery arson https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9205/wapping-dispute-arson

2026-06-01 10:16:14 UTC

#OtD 1 Jun 1926 a police patrol in Wyndham, Australia headed out. Over the next 18 days they murdered up to 300 Aboriginal people in the Forrest River Massacre. None were convicted for the killings https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/8090/forrest-river-massacre

2026-05-31 11:31:43 UTC

#OtD 31 May 1948 the Palestinian village of Huj was ethnically cleansed by Israeli forces even though previously the villagers helped hide Zionist militiamen from British troops. The residents were expelled to Gaza where their descendants remain today. https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/11421/ethnic-cleansing-of-huj

2026-05-29 09:11:26 UTC

#OtD 29 May 1941 Disney Studios animators in LA struck after 16 were fired for demanding union recognition. After five weeks workers won pay rises of up to 50% and nearly all their other demands. Walt Disney remained bitter about it until his death https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/10122/disney-animators'-strike

2026-05-27 20:11:10 UTC

#OtD 27 May 1919 workers in Lima declared a general strike against the high cost of living. The government eventually crushed the strike by killing at least 100 and wounding and jailing hundreds more https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9940/general-strike-in-lima-callao

2026-05-24 08:31:26 UTC

#OtD 24 May 1988 the homophobic 'Section 28' passed into law in the UK. It stated that local authorities must not "promote homosexuality" or "the acceptability of homosexuality as a pretended family relationship." The law sparked a wave of resistance. https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9679/section-28-comes-into-law

2026-05-23 17:16:48 UTC

#OtD 23 May 1908 Annemarie Schwarzenbach, bisexual Swiss German photographer, writer, anti-fascist and androgynous style icon was born. Annemarie rejected her pro-Nazi family and began financing anti-fascist media and photographing the rise of fascism https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9587/annemarie-schwarzenbach-born

2026-05-22 12:11:42 UTC

#OtD 22 May 1920 antisemitic hoax, The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, was printed by Henry Ford in the Dearborn Independent and sold at all Ford outlets. He was later given Nazi Germany's highest award by Hitler https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9506/ford-publishes-antisemitism

2026-05-19 04:46:49 UTC

#OtD 19 May 1933 Germany's Nazi government abolished collective bargaining – the principle of workers collectively negotiating with employers over pay and conditions. Instead, conditions were to be regulated by labour "trustees", appointed by Hitler https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9129/nazis-abolish-collective-bargaining

2026-05-18 18:11:43 UTC

#OtD 18 May 1968 despite the brutal dictatorship of General Franco, 10,000 people in Madrid marched in solidarity with the revolt happening in France. Barricades were erected and clashes with police occurred https://stories.workingclasshistory.com/article/9031/madrid-may-68-solidarity-protest