I recently made comments at a May Day Rally in Cincinnati. These were my comments:
Sisters and brothers, Friends, community partners… Champions of working people… Good afternoon!
I am Brian Griffin… and I have the honor of serving as the Executive Secretary-Treasurer of the Cincinnati AFL-CIO Central Labor Council…Representing tens of thousands of working families across Hamilton County, Clermont County, and Brown County, and this region.
The men and women who:
- Build it,
- Fix it,
- Teach it,
- Protect it,
- And keep it running
Every single day…
The hands that shape this city… And the backbone that holds it up…
And I will tell you… There is no greater privilege than standing here with you on+ May Day…
Looking out at this gathering of Leaders, Organizers, community partners, and working people who believe in something bigger than themselves…
Who do not just talk about solidarity… They live it… And that never gets old.
And I want to start with a little gratitude… Because nothing we do in this movement happens alone.
- Not a contract won.
- Not a worker protected.
- Not a single step forward.
To everyone who helped bring us together today…
To those doing the work every single day… most often without recognition.
And to those just finding their place in this movement…
Thank you!
You are the reason this work matters.
You are the reason this movement endures.
And that is exactly why May Day is not just another date on the calendar…
This is our day… A day rooted in struggle… forged in sacrifice… and carried forward by generation after generation who refused to accept less.
To accept less than Dignity, Fairness, and a voice…
So, as we gather today, on May Day — The International Day of the Worker…
We gather not simply to celebrate… But to remember.
And not simply to remember… But to recommit.
Because this day was not given to working people. It was earned.
- Earned in long hours…
- In dangerous conditions…
- In sacrifice.
Earned in moments when standing up meant risking everything…
And staying silent meant losing even more.
If we are going to do more than just gather…
More than just speak…
More than just remember…
We need to understand what this day really means…
And if we are to understand what May Day really means … We must begin where it began.
In 1886… In the city of Chicago… Working men and women rose up with a simple demand:
- Eight hours for work.
- Eight hours of rest.
- And eight hours to do whatever we damn well please.
At a time when people labored ten… twelve… even sixteen hours a day…
That Workers” demand was not radical.
- It was reasonable.
- It was human.
- It was right.
And on May 1st… Workers across this nation stepped forward together… To say: ENOUGH!
Chicago became the center of that movement.
But then… just days later… at Haymarket Square… that movement met violence.
- A bomb was thrown.
- Gunfire followed.
- Lives were lost.
And in the days that followed… justice was not served. It was denied.
- Labor leaders were arrested,
- Tried without evidence,
- And executed…
Not for what they had done, but for what they represented.
And in that moment… May Day was forged.
- Forged in struggle.
- Forged in sacrifice.
- Forged in the unshakable belief that working people deserve dignity…
And what happened in Chicago did not stay in Chicago.
It spread…
- From shop floor to shop floor…
- From city to city…
- From nation to nation…
Until workers across the world saw themselves in that struggle… And claimed May 1st as a day for workers everywhere.
- A day to stand together.
- A day to speak together.
- A day to demand together.
And change came… they got it!
- The eight-hour day.
- Safer workplaces.
- The right to organize.
- Fair wages.
- Benefits.
- Protections.
Not handed down… But built up… By working hands… Locked together.
None of it was given.
- All of it was fought for.
- All of it was organized for.
- All of it was won…
And yet… If we think that struggle is behind us… Then we are not paying attention.
Because today… Working people are still fighting.
- Fighting for wages that keep up with the cost of living.
- Fighting for safe conditions.
- Fighting for dignity,
- Respect,
- And stability…
In a world that too often tries to treat them as disposable.
The tools may have changed… The language may have changed… But the fight has not.
And today… On this May Day… We are not alone.
Across this country, and across this world, workers are gathering just as we are.
- Marching.
- Speaking.
- Standing.
In some places, they risk their jobs…
In some places, their freedom…
In some places… far more than that.
And still… they stand!
Because they know what we know. That dignity at work is not a privilege. It is a right!
That fairness is not too much to ask. It is the bare minimum!
So today… we remember.
- We remember the sacrifice.
- We remember the struggle.
- We remember the solidarity.
But we do more than remember. We do more than just take our place in that story. We must look to its Stewardship… at its next chapter.
And the question is not what was done then.
The question is what will be done now.
And, if it was worth fighting for then…it is damn well worth fighting for now!
If it was worth sacrificing for then…it is damn-well worth standing for now.
If it was worth defending then…it is damn-well worth defending now.
So, on this May Day…let it be heard.
Let it be heard
- in every shop
- and every job site…
- In every hospital hallway,
- and every job trailer…
In every place where working people stand.
Let it be heard.
- That dignity is not negotiable.
- That fairness is not optional.
- That working people will not be left behind.
Let it be seen
- In our unity…
- In our organizing…
- In our willingness to stand shoulder to shoulder and say: ENOUGH!
And let it rise.
- Let it rise from this place…
- From this city…
- And from every worker gathered here.
Let it rise until it cannot be ignored.
Let it rise until it cannot be denied.
Let it rise until it reaches every hall of power!
And as it rises…We must tell the truth! This movement… this fight… does not belong to us alone.
It did not begin with us, and it will not end with us.
Because a new generation is rising!
- A generation finding its voice…
- Finding its strength…
- Finding its place in this movement.
And the question is not whether they are ready. The question is whether we are ready.
- Ready to lift them up.
- Ready to make space.
- Ready to pass it on!
Not just the victories… but the responsibility.
Because this movement cannot stand still.
- It must grow.
- It must be carried forward by new hands…
- With new energy…
- And new vision.
And we must have the courage to say: The future of this movement is not behind us. It is standing here… now… right in front of us!
- It is standing among us.
- It is marching with us.
- It is watching us…Right now!
And yes… the day will come… even if I am not there to see the full promise of what we have fought for…
To see the success of our goal…
That promised time… when the full measure of justice is rolled out like a mighty river.
I promise you — That day is gonna come!
- And if we have done our work…
- If we have built this movement strong…
- If we have lifted up those who come after us…
Then it will not matter if I am there to see it.
Because they will carry it forward.
They will rise.
They will finish the work.
So, our job now is to simply do our part.
- Let us build.
- Let us teach.
- Let us lift.
- Let us prepare the way!
So that when the next generation takes this stage… they do not inherit a memory.
They inherit a movement.
- And when their voices rise…
- When their call rings out…
- When their fight carries forward…
Let it be said…That we stood. That we fought… and that we passed it on.
Sisters and brothers… the struggle is real… the fight continues.
Let us be ever vigilant…
And let us prepare to meet that moment!
Happy May Day, Sisters and Brothers…
- God bless this great nation…
- God bless its workers!
- And God bless the Labor Movement!
Solidarity forever!
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