Laborfest: Lucy Parsons: Anarchist, Labor Organizer

Lucy Parsons: Anarchist - A reading of a play, written and directed by Howard Pflanzer
Labor Troubadour Anne Feeney Sings Out on Woody Guthrie’s Birthday
Hear a reading of Howard Pflanzer’s “Lucy Parsons”. Lucy Parsons was a radical Black labor activist and anarchist. She was born a slave near Waco, Texas and married Albert R. Parsons who had become a radical white Republican after serving first as a Confederate soldier. They moved to Chicago in 1873 and became labor organizers. In a labor rally for the 8-hour day, a bomb exploded and her husband along with eight other men were framed and charged with being responsible for the bomb. This became known as the Haymarket Square bombing and is now commemorated all over the world as May Day. She began a national speaking tour to raise money and support for her husband and the other defendants. Her struggle and life is a very important part of American history. The playwright Howard Pflanzer shows the struggles and realities of her life.

This year is the 100th anniversary of Woody Guthrie, and Anne Feeney, former president of the Pittsburgh Musicians Union and a labor troubadour singing and standing up for working people in the US and around the world, will perform Guthrie’s songs.
http://www.annefeeney.com
See also:
http://lucyparsons.org/biography-iww.php
http://www.doollee.com/PlaywrightsP/pflanzer-howard.html
http://www.woodyguthrie.org/
http://www.laborfest.net/2012/2012schedule.htm