Haymarket affair

The Haymarket affair (also known as the Haymarket massacre or Haymarket riot) refers to the aftermath of a bombing that takes place at a labor demonstration on Tuesday May 4, 1886, at Haymarket Square in Chicago.

It begins as a peaceful rally in support of workers striking for an eight-hour day.

An unknown person throws a dynamite bomb at police as they act to disperse the public meeting.

The bomb blast and ensuing gunfire results in the deaths of seven police officers and at least four civilians, and the wounding of scores of others.In the internationally publicized legal proceedings that follow, eight anarchists are convicted of conspiracy.

The evidence is that none of the defendants on trial had thrown the bomb.

Seven are sentenced to death and one to a term of 15 years in prison.

The death sentences of two of the defendants are commuted by Illinois governor Richard J. Oglesby to terms of life in prison, and another commits suicide in jail rather than face the gallows.

The other four are hanged on November 11, 1887.

In 1893, Illinois' new governor John Peter Altgeld pardons the remaining defendants and criticized the trial.The Haymarket affair is generally considered significant as the origin of international May Day observances for workers.

The site of the incident is designated a Chicago Landmark on March 25, 1992, and a public sculpture is dedicated at the site in 2004.

The Haymarket Martyrs' Monument in nearby Forest Park is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and designated a National Historic Landmark on February 18, 1997.

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