In an effort to raise awareness for educational and enlightenment purposes, WITHIN NIGERIA recognizes a significant event that happened on May 1 in our country, Nigeria.
On this day, May 1 in 1980, the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) Government of Kano declared the first workers’ day in Nigeria.
According to reports, the Federal Government under the leadership of Alhaji Shehu Usman Aliyu Shagari declared May 1 a national holiday in 1981.
The first May Day celebrations honoring workers were held on May 1st, 1890, as a result of the first international congress of socialist parties in Europe’s Paris, France, on July 14, 1889, declaring May 1st to be the “Workers Day of International Unity and Solidarity.”
Due to circumstances on the other side of the Atlantic, the date was selected. The eight-hour workday was a demand made in 1884 by the American Federation of Organized Trades and Labor Unions, which was to take effect on May 1st, 1886.
This led to the general strike and the Haymarket Riot of 1886 in Chicago, but it also finally led to the eight-hour workday being formally recognized.
Chicago’s Haymarket Square witnessed riots that had started as nonviolent protests against the mandate for an eight-hour workweek in law.
Several police officers and some bystanders were killed when a bomb was thrown at them while they were attempting to disperse the crowds at a protest rally on May 4th, 1890.
Even though America did not fully adopt the eight-hour workday until the 20th century, the events in Chicago sparked similar demonstrations in other parts of Europe, leading to the establishment of May 1 as the day to recognize workers’ rights worldwide.
In the majority of nations, May 1 is observed as May Day. The bank holiday is observed on the first Monday in May in the United Kingdom and Ireland rather than being established at May 1.
The Soviet Union officially endorsed the holiday in the 20th century, and it is also observed as the International Solidarity of Workers Day, particularly in other Communist countries.
During the Cold War, celebrations in communist nations frequently included enormous military parades where the newest weapons were on display, as well as demonstrations of the support of the populace for the ruling class.
Another justification for the government’s opposition to May Day labor is that communists and socialists use it as their principal holiday.
Curiously, Labor Day is observed in the United States on the first Monday in September (May 1st is Loyalty Day, a legal but underappreciated holiday in the country, considering the provenance of the date).
Some claim that this was done in order to avoid remembering the riots that had taken place in 1886. Another justification for the official opposition to May Day labor festivities in America is that communists and socialists have made it their main holiday.
Labour Day is also observed on different dates in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the Netherlands, albeit this is due to where the holiday originated.
