This week we read an article as well as watched two short videos was very devastating to watch. To continue the discussion of women’s suffrage, this week we were educated on the labor conditions women faced in the 1900s. After a terrible tragedy women joined together and began the Labor Organizing and the ERA in the 20th century. In the first video, “The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire” we saw a tragedy that happened in 1911. I’ve heard about this event before in history classes, it is famous and well known. It is one of the best examples to use when discussing labor abuse. The video begins by telling us the Immense of hours young women were working at this factory. Day in and day out these young immigrant women would work making shirtwaists. One evening a fire broke out at the factory and the narrator lists everything that went wrong that led to the deaths of 146 women. The fire couldn’t be put out because the hose was rusted! Just hearing that shocks me every time, and makes me think how terrible the working conditions must have been if a safety hose was rusted! Workers couldn’t escape because only one elevator was in service that broke down during the fire, they also couldn’t take the stairs because the door was locked. Hearing this event always makes me upset, the factory owners did nothing to protect their workers. These women were treated like their lives were worth nothing, the factory owners only cared about making money. What makes this even more unjust is after the community gathered and protested the two factory workers, Max Blanck and Isaac Harris were acquitted of their crime. The only good outcome of this tragedy is the reform created to protect labor workers. Starting with the ILGWU and laws being passed. One of these laws called the Sullivan-Hoey fire prevention law that requires sprinklers at factories.

  In the second video, “Triangle Returns” the director (Charles Kernaghan) of the institute for global labor and human rights narrates explaining in depth of the shirtwaist factory fire. He describes the deaths the young women faced. They had two choices to die by fire or by jumping out of the burning building. It was a graphic video to watch, seeing bodies on the floor. Charles Kernaghan argues that little has changed in the global sweatshop economy. He proves his argument by explaining another tragic fire that happened in Bangladesh on December 14, 2010. A fire broke out at a factory that was eleven stories high. Again just like the Shirtwaist Factory Fire the workers could not get out because the stairs exit were locked. The video continues by showing the workers jumping out of the eleven-story building. Again labor workers have to choose between burning to death or having a recognizable body to give their families. It’s terrible. Nobody should have to make that choice. Kernaghan continues by expressing his frustration with the labor workers’ pay. Working hours and hours for cents a day. When big companies refuse to give their workers a raise. In addition, my classmates’ snapshot, Heatherlee. shows a picture that appears to be an old photo of labor workers with a photo of today’s labor workers. Although both are taken years apart there are still labor workers who look unhappy. 

Lastly, we read the article, “Virginia Just Became the 38th State to Pass the Equal Rights Amendment. Here’s What to Know About the History of the ERA.” It is a powerful and educational article that explains the timeline process the ERA went through. This article first begins by telling us Virginia became the 38th state to vote to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment. As a result, fulfilling the requirement that three-quarters of the states must approve an Amendment in order to add it to the U.S. Constitution. However, the article explains there is a long road ahead before that happens. What stood out to me in the article was when it says, “Advocates say that the amendment is held back by the sense among some people that it’s not necessary, but proponents argue that it could strengthen the legal basis for combating violence against women, pay inequality and maternity leave.” What surprised me was that we still are fighting for women’s equality on all sides. Some argue the ERA is not “necessary,” how is it not necessary? To have laws that protect women? While others argue the usual argument, that it would give us the equality we deserve but the higher power does not want to give us. It reminds me of the reading we read before, “Feminist Politics: Where We Stand” by Bell Hooks. When she argues the feminist movement can not be achieved if women will fight with each other. I think the article and the two videos we watched this week goes to show the struggle women face. We are caged, in the 1900s women were caged in working environments and today we are caged in stereotypes and inequality.