Haledon, New Jersey – The 21st Annual Labor Day Parade, co-sponsored by the American Labor Museum/Botto House National Landmark and the Borough of Haledon, is scheduled for Sunday, September 2nd, 2012. Step-off will take place at 1:30 PM at the Botto House in Haledon. The parade will finish at the Great Falls Historic District in the City of Paterson.
This year’s Labor Day Parade will be lead by Grand Marshal Larry Hamm, Chair of the People’s Organization For Progress (POP), an independent, grass roots, political organization that is active in Newark and Northern New Jersey area. After graduating from Princeton University in 1978, Mr. Hamm became active in local politics in the City of Newark as an advocate for African-Americans and the cause of human rights. Today, as head of POP, Larry Hamm builds unity among community organizations to bring about quality education, employment opportunities, access to healthcare, and to address racial profiling and police brutality. Mr. Hamm is a recipient of the “The Hope Shapiro Bread and Roses Peace Award” by New Jersey Peace Action.
As part of the opening ceremony at 1:00 PM on Sunday, September 2nd on the balcony of the Botto House, our National Anthem, The Star-Spangled Banner will be sung by NJ classical soprano Patricia Brady-Danzig, in honor of her mother, Elizabeth D’Arcy Brady who was one of the first members of the ILGWU.
All community organizations, unions, businesses, cultural groups, and individuals interested in joining this historic march can contact the Museum at (973) 595-7953 or by e-mail at labormuseum@aol.com. A Commemorative Journal will record the names of participants and all those who make donations to defray the cost of the parade. Parade sponsors who donate $100 can have their names recorded on a Commemorative Mug. Contributions of $200 will enable a donor to have a listing on the Labor Day Parade T-shirt.
It was on June 28th, 1894 that President Grover Cleveland (a native of Caldwell, NJ) signed the bill that made Labor Day a legal national holiday. In that same year, on Monday, September 3rd, 1894, the first official holiday was celebrated and every first Monday of September thereafter.
The Botto House National Landmark, home of the American Labor Museum, is located at 83 Norwood Street in Haledon, NJ. It was the meeting place for over 20,000 silk mill workers during the 1913 Paterson Silk Strike. The Museum offers a free lending library, restored period rooms, changing exhibits, Museum Store, Old World Gardens, educational programs and special events. The Museum’s hours of operation are Monday through Friday 9AM-5PM. Tours are offered Wednesday through Saturday from 1-4 PM or by appointment.
The Shirts Off Our Backs: Union T-shirt Quilts exhibit will be on display at the Museum through December 31st, 2012. The Museum Store will also be open to the public before the parade step-off.