March, Concert to Mark Labor Day In Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES, CA — Labor Day will be marked in Los Angeles on Monday by a march, rally and barbecue in Wilmington and a music festival in Exposition Park.

The theme of the Los Angeles/Long Beach Harbor Labor Coalition's 37th annual Labor Day March and Rally is "One Goal, Many Voices."

Thousands of union members, their families, supporters and friends, are expected for the march, which will begin at 10 a.m. at the intersection of Broad Avenue and E Street, go east on E Street to Avalon Boulevard, continue north on Avalon Boulevard to M Street, concluding at Banning Park, where a rally and barbecue will begin at noon.

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The fifth annual Nightshift festival is billed by organizers as the biggest Labor Day event on the West Coast. Performers include Snoop Dogg, Los Lonely Boys, Poncho Sanchez, Victor Orlando & Fun-Ja-La, the Dennis Jones Band, Korduroy, Mahkenna, Martay, That Infernal Machine and Thunder Snatch.

Doors open at 11 a.m. with the opening act taking the stage at 12:30 p.m. General admission tickets are $20.

The festival is organized by Working Californians, which describes itself as a nonprofit research and advocacy organization consisting of a coalition of innovators, entrepreneurs, labor groups, public opinion research and community engagement professionals, public policy experts, entertainment industry executives, community leaders and policy makers.

"For many of us, Labor Day marks the end of summer, family vacations, and long days by the pool," said Rusty Hicks, the executive secretary- treasurer of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO.

"While often regarded as a day for one last barbecue, remember what Monday is really about -- a time to reflect and celebrate the contributions of hardworking women and men, who get up every day and work hard to keep our country bustling and thriving."

In his Labor Day proclamation, President Barack Obama wrote, "On Labor Day, we celebrate the grit and resilience of America's workers and their families, and we recommit to reaching for a world in which they are afforded the rights and opportunities they deserve."

Labor Day, a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity and well-being of the nation, was first celebrated in the U.S. on Sept. 5, 1882 in New York City.

In 1887, Oregon became the first state to formally recognize Labor Day. By 1894, 31 of the then 44 states had made Labor Day a holiday when Congress passed a bill designating the first Monday in September a legal holiday in the District of Columbia and territories.

— City News Service, image courtesy of the Los Angeles/Long Beach Harbor Labor Coalition