U.S. Unpatriotic Capitalists: A Memorial Day Massacre of 1937

On this day, I’d like to remember the fallen soldiers and the men brutally taken down on Memorial Day 1937 by Chicago policemen.

Republic Steel is long remembered for the Memorial Day massacre of 1937 when men and their families were shot at and physically beaten by hundreds of Chicago policemen reportedly on the orders of Republic Steel.  

Today, Republic Steel’s founding American roots are now in the hands of Mexico, a country run by Cartels. American Foreign Owned companies are not new. Just ask China. But little has changed as to labor practices. Recall when “Republic Steel fined $2.4 million for OSHA Health and Safety Violations.”

According to Cleveland paper, the company was cited with violations of “failing to provide workers with adequate protection against falls, failing to protect employees who service or maintain machines and failing to provide machine guarding to protect workers from hazardous machinery.” Of course, the company agreed to a settlement.

But labor issues of the depression era which led to the 1937 Massacre are a stark reminder how little has changed. In these inflationary times of deregulation and low wages, we find another industry putting profit ahead of patriotism – Aerospace.

Monopolistic practices in the Aerospace industry have created the practice of ‘price gauging’ putting a ‘choke hold’ on the Pentagon. Defense is finding itself between a ‘rock and a hard place!’ Taxpayers, it is you who pays for the overpriced aircraft, tanks, subs, and weapons. I hear it’s close to 1 Trillion! Not including the freebies to Ukraine.

As airlines and airports face systems control and labor issues, will they too be squeezed to the limit as Defense? Will an airliner be forced to cut more corners? If so, National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will have their work cut out for them.

If air disasters start to proliferate the skies, will Greg Mitchell’s 2023 book, MEMORIAL DAY MASSACRE: Workers Die, Film Buried inspire the writer who will author “Memorial Day Air Disasters: Passengers and Crew Die, Bodies and Black Box Exposed.”

Aerospace Execs, I remind you, Airplanes as Death take no holidays.