The Haymarket Affair

2024/10/31

In Our Time

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Christopher Phelps

Gary Gerstle

Ruth Kinna

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Ruth Kinna: 我研究了海市场事件,这场悲剧源于芝加哥工人争取八小时工作日的斗争。5月1日的全国大罢工虽然平静结束,但5月3日McCormick收割机厂的罢工却以警方枪杀四名工人告终,激化了矛盾。5月4日的海市场集会,旨在抗议警方的暴力行为,却因一枚炸弹的爆炸而演变成血腥冲突。虽然炸弹袭击者身份至今不明,但八名无政府主义者被捕,并被指控犯有煽动谋杀罪。这场审判不仅是对无政府主义者的审判,更是对当时美国劳资关系紧张局势的反映。我着重研究了奥古斯特·斯拜斯和阿尔伯特·帕森斯这两位重要的无政府主义者。斯拜斯是《工人报》的编辑,他呼吁工人武装自卫;帕森斯是《警报》的编辑,他也是土生土长的美国人,他的经历和观点对理解这场事件至关重要。他们都属于国际工人协会,这个组织在协调全美无政府主义行动中发挥了作用。在审判中,检方选择性地引用了他们的文章,以此来描绘他们热衷于暴力的形象,并忽略了当时主流媒体中同样充满暴力的言论。他们被指控犯有煽动谋杀罪,并非因为他们直接参与投掷炸弹,而是因为他们发表的文章被认为煽动了暴力。最终,四名无政府主义者被处以绞刑,另一人自杀身亡。这场审判不仅反映了当时美国社会对外国激进分子的恐惧,也暴露了美国劳资关系的压迫性以及司法制度的缺陷。 Christopher Phelps: 我关注的是海市场事件中无政府主义者的思想和行动。当时的无政府主义者主张建立一个没有统治和权威的自治自由社会,他们认为可以通过工人阶级自身的组织和自治来实现这一目标。芝加哥的无政府主义者,特别是阿尔伯特·帕森斯和奥古斯特·斯拜斯,他们既是劳工运动的领导者,也是各自报纸的编辑,他们的观点在工人阶级中有一定影响力。他们最初尝试通过选举参与政治,但由于政治腐败和工人缺乏参与政治的时间,他们最终转向了无政府主义的观点。在海市场事件的审判中,他们被指控犯有煽动谋杀罪,证据主要来自他们发表在报纸上的文章。检方试图将他们描绘成热衷于暴力的激进分子,但他们实际上更关注的是社会平等和工人权利。他们的死刑判决在国际上引起了广泛关注,许多国际知名人士呼吁对他们进行宽大处理。他们的死被视为对劳工运动的镇压,也促使了“五一国际劳动节”的诞生。 Gary Gerstle: 我从历史的角度分析了海市场事件。19世纪的美国,工业化迅速发展,资本主义发展不受监管,导致贫富差距扩大,工人阶级面临失业和缺乏社会保障,最终引发工人抗议和罢工浪潮。海市场事件发生在芝加哥,这个城市当时是美国制造业和贸易中心,劳资冲突异常激烈。事件的直接导火索是5月3日芝加哥工厂发生的工人被枪杀事件,背景则是全国范围内的争取八小时工作日的总罢工。在海市场集会上,有人向警察队伍投掷炸弹,引发了混乱的枪战,导致多人死伤。虽然炸弹袭击者身份不明,但八名无政府主义者被捕,他们被指控犯有煽动谋杀罪。这场审判反映了当时美国社会中雇主和工人之间深刻的冲突,以及对外国激进分子和暴力言论的恐惧。许多人认为言论等同于行动,这使得无政府主义者成为众矢之的。海市场事件并没有平息美国劳资冲突,反而在随后的几十年里,劳资冲突依然激烈,暴力事件不断发生,直到20世纪30年代和40年代,美国才建立起更好的劳资关系制度。 Melvyn Bragg: 作为主持人,我引导了这场讨论,并对各位嘉宾的观点进行了总结。海市场事件是一起复杂的事件,它既是美国劳资冲突的缩影,也是无政府主义者命运的象征。这场事件的发生,既有其深刻的社会经济原因,也有其复杂的政治背景。无政府主义者的观点和行动,在当时的环境下,既有其合理性,也有其局限性。他们的死,既是悲剧,也是历史的注脚。

Deep Dive

Key Insights

Why did tensions between workers and employers in America escalate in the late 19th century?

The rapid industrialization after the Civil War led to unregulated capitalist development, resulting in cycles of boom and bust, widespread inequality, and lack of welfare provisions. Workers often faced unemployment and poor conditions, leading to increasing protests and unionization, which were met with violent repression by employers and the state.

What role did Chicago play in the labor conflicts of the late 19th century?

Chicago became the epicenter of American industrial relations due to its rapid growth as a manufacturing and trade hub. It was a key city for railroads, steel, and other industries, making it a focal point for labor disputes. The city's explosive growth and lack of adequate governance mechanisms exacerbated tensions between workers and employers.

Why were immigrants, particularly from Germany and Eastern Europe, a significant part of the labor movement in Chicago?

Many immigrants, especially Germans, were refugees from failed revolutions in 1848 and brought radical ideologies like anarchism and Marxism to America. They became key figures in the labor movement, advocating for workers' rights and challenging the status quo through radical activism.

What was the primary goal of the Haymarket rally on May 4, 1886?

The rally was called to protest the police killing of striking workers at the McCormick Reaper Works on May 3, 1886. It was also part of the broader movement for an eight-hour workday, which had sparked a nationwide general strike.

Who were the key anarchist figures involved in the Haymarket rally?

August Spies and Albert Parsons were prominent anarchists at the rally. Spies was a member of the International Working People's Association and edited a German-language newspaper, while Parsons was a Texan-born anarchist and editor of The Alarm, an English-language anarchist paper.

What was the significance of Johann Most in the anarchist movement?

Johann Most was one of the most famous anarchists in America before Haymarket. He advocated for 'propaganda by the deed,' which involved using physical force against state violence. He wrote a pamphlet on bomb-making and was a key figure in the International Working People's Association, influencing figures like Parsons and Spies.

What was the immediate cause of the violence at the Haymarket rally?

A bomb was thrown into a regiment of police marching into the rally, killing one policeman and sparking chaotic shooting that resulted in more deaths and injuries. The identity of the bomber was never confirmed, but the incident led to widespread fear and the arrest of anarchists.

What was the main charge against the Haymarket anarchists during the trial?

The anarchists were charged with inciting murder through conspiracy, based on their advocacy of armed self-defense and articles about dynamite in their newspapers. The prosecution argued that their rhetoric led to the violence, even though there was no direct evidence linking them to the bomb.

Why did the Haymarket trial become internationally significant?

The trial became a global cause because the anarchists were convicted despite a lack of evidence connecting them to the bombing. Their execution in 1887, despite international appeals for clemency, turned them into martyrs for the labor movement, leading to the creation of May Day as an international workers' holiday.

What was the long-term legacy of the Haymarket Affair for the labor movement?

The Haymarket Affair exposed the repressive nature of labor relations in the U.S. and inspired future labor activists like Eugene V. Debs. It also led to the creation of May Day as an international workers' holiday, though it is not widely celebrated in the U.S. The trial marked a turning point in the struggle for workers' rights and the recognition of labor unions.

Chapters

This chapter sets the stage for the Haymarket Affair, covering the labor tensions in 1880s Chicago, the events leading up to the bombing at a workers' rally, and the immediate aftermath. It highlights the volatile relationship between workers and employers and the prevailing atmosphere of violence.

A bomb thrown at a workers' rally in Chicago's Haymarket Square killed a policeman and sparked chaotic shooting.
The bomber remains unidentified, but eight anarchists were arrested and charged with inciting murder.
The event became a symbol of the violent conflict between labor and capital in 19th-century America.

Shownotes Transcript

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the notorious attack of 4th of May 1886 at a workers rally in Chicago when somebody threw a bomb that killed a policeman, Mathias J. Degan. The chaotic shooting that followed left more people dead and sent shockwaves across America and Europe. This was in Haymarket Square at a protest for an eight hour working day following a call for a general strike and the police killing of striking workers the day before, at a time when labour relations in America were marked by violent conflict. The bomber was never identified but two of the speakers at the rally, both of then anarchists and six of their supporters were accused of inciting murder. Four of them, George Engel, Adolph Fischer, Albert Parsons, and August Spies were hanged on 11th November 1887 only to be pardoned in the following years while a fifth, Louis Ling, had killed himself after he was convicted. The May International Workers Day was created in their memory.

With

Ruth Kinna Professor of Political Theory at Loughborough University

Christopher Phelps Associate Professor of American Studies at the University of Nottingham

And

Gary Gerstle Paul Mellon Professor of American History Emeritus at the University of Cambridge

Producer: Simon Tillotson

Reading list:

Paul Avrich, The Haymarket Tragedy (Princeton University Press, 1984)

Henry David, The History of the Haymarket Affair (Collier Books, 1963)

James Green, Death in the Haymarket: A Story of Chicago, the First Labor Movement and the Bombing that Divided Gilded Age America (Pantheon, 2006)

Carl Levy and Matthew S. Adams (eds.), The Palgrave Handbook of Anarchism (Palgrave Macmillan, 2018), especially 'Haymarket and the Rise of Syndicalism' by Kenyon Zimmer

Franklin Rosemont and David Roediger, Haymarket Scrapbook: 125th Anniversary Edition (AK Press, 2012)

In Our Time is a BBC Studios Audio Production

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