May Day was celebrated in downtown Fresno on Sunday, May 1. The theme was immigration reform and about 300 people enjoyed the march, music and camaraderie with family and fellow workers.
International Workers Day is a celebration of the working class and marches are held in cities throughout the world. Achievements like the eight hour day, the end of child labor, the ongoing effort for every worker to earn a living wage and immigrant rights are featured.
The march went through downtown Fresno stopping briefly at the Fresno County Jail where Gloria Hernandez spoke about the injustice of the criminal justice system. In solidarity with the thousands of poor and working people incarcerated in the jail, marchers continued through Fresno and stopped again at the Immigration, Customs and Enforcement (ICE) detention facility. Speakers denounced the separation of families and the importance of immigrant rights.
Chanting “The People United Will Never be Defeated” (in Spanish) the marchers returned to Fresno City Hall where they had begun.
This event was organized by the May 1 Coalition. Groups at the march included the United Farm Workers, Dolores Huerta Foundation, Service Employees International Union, Immigrant Rights, and Education Network (SIREN), We are Home Action, Frente Indígena de Organizaciones Binacionales (FIOB) and Reedley Social Services Inc.
