The Million Worker March on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.

The Million Worker March was a rally against perceived attacks upon working families in America and what organizers described as millions of jobs lost during the Bush administration with the complicity of Congress. The event was spearheaded by the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU), Local 10, and held on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on October 17, 2004. The event included speakers Ralph Shoenman, Larry Holmes, Ramsey Clark, Heidi Durham, Dick Gregory, and Mumia Abu Jamal (pre-recorded), and musical groups Billionaires for Bush, Emily Baloney, Ngoma Hill, Jack Chernos, and Judy Gorman, among others, in front of a banner reading, "Repeal the Taft-Hartley Act". There was also a very strong anti-war sentiment at the rally, with a number of speakers speaking against the war in Iraq, people setting up tables with anti-war literature, and a large number of anti-war signs. In addition, the (now no-longer active) antiwar4themillionworkermarch.org Web site explicitly stated that the Million Worker March was an anti-war event. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (2272x1704, 729 KB)The Million Worker March underway at the Lincoln Memorial. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (2272x1704, 729 KB)The Million Worker March underway at the Lincoln Memorial. ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the 43rd and current President of the United States. ... A congress is a gathering of people, especially a gathering for a political purpose. ... The International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) is a labor union which primarily represents dock workers won the West Coast of the United States, Hawaii and Alaska; it also represents hotel workers in Hawaii, cannery workers in Alaska and warehouse workers throughout the West. ... The Lincoln Memorial, built 1915 - 1922 Aerial view of the Lincoln Memorial. ... October 17 is the 290th (in leap years the 291st) day of the year according to the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Attorney General Clark & President Lyndon B. Johnson. ... Richard Dick Claxton Gregory, born October 12, 1932 in St. ... Mumia Abu-Jamal (born Wesley Cook April 24, 1954) is a journalist and political activist. ... Billionaires for Bush is a culture jamming political street theater organization that satirically purports to support George W. Bush for his activities which, they believe benefit corporations and the super-wealthy. ... Jack Chernos (1961- ), San Francisco-based activist singer/songerwriter. ... The Taft-Hartley Act severely restricted the activities and power of labor unions in the United States. ...

Despite the name, derived from the Million Man March, the Million Worker March neither consisted of a million workers (attendance was estimated at 10,000 people according to local news reports), nor an actual march. The event also did not have the endorsement of the AFL-CIO. The Million Man March was an African American march of protest and unity convened by Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan in Washington, DC on October 16, 1995. ... The AFL-CIO is the largest labor union federation in the United States. ...

Through the course of the day, however, there were two unofficial marches to and from the rally site. Early in the day, an anarchist and anti-capitalist contingent marched on a feeder march from a meeting place in front of the headquarters of the AFL-CIO to the main rally site at the Lincoln Memorial, via Lafayette Square and the World Bank. Towards the end of the day, a second contingent of participants, many of whom had participated in the earlier march, including a small black bloc, marched via Constitution Avenue to the Hotel Washington, as a show of solidarity with the hotel's workers, who, represented by UNITE HERE Local 25, were on the verge of going on strike. Presidents Park is a unit of the National Park Service, located in Washington, D.C., USA at 38° 53′ 42″ N 77° 02′ 11″ W. It includes the White House, a visitor center, Lafeyette Square, and the Ellipse. ... Logo of the World Bank The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD, in Romance languages: BIRD), better known as the World Bank, is an international organization whose original mission was to finance the reconstruction of nations devastated by WWII. Now, its mission has expanded to fight poverty by means... Black Bloc at April 12, 2003 anti-war demonstration in Washington DC. A black bloc is a group of White protesters, often dressed in black, who cooperate in small, autonomous affinity groups to resist police. ... UNITE HERE is a result of a 2004 merger of two American labor unions: the Union of Needletrades, Industrial, and Textile Employees (UNITE) and the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Union (HERE). ...

See also

• Labor Movement
• UNITE HERE
• List of protest marches on Washington, DC

The labor movement (or labour movement) is a broad term for the development of a collective organization of working people, to campaign in their own interest for better treatment from their employers and political governments. ... UNITE HERE is a result of a 2004 merger of two American labor unions: the Union of Needletrades, Industrial, and Textile Employees (UNITE) and the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Union (HERE). ... The following is a list of protest marches on Washington, DC: April 30, 1894 - Coxeys Army. ...

External links

• Million Worker March Movement
• The Schumin Web: Million Worker March
• Sinkers.org video
• Archive.org snapshot of antiwar4themillionworkermarch.org site from October 11, 2004
• The Million Worker March: Black People Did Not Get the Vote by Voting An Interview with Clarence Thomas (ILWU Local 10), Co-Chair of the Million Worker March
• Workers Preparing To Rally On Mall By Manny Fernandez, Washington Post, Thursday, October 14, 2004