Every year on the first Monday in September, Americans celebrate Labor Day. While some celebrate with a long weekend of end-of-summer festivities, the Holiday originated as a tribute to the social and economic achievements of our nation’s workers.
The Lions Club and the LEAP Ambassadors celebrate the day by planting flags–early in the morning–across the extended downtown in Huntsville, an activity undertaken on most major holidays.
For us, it is not only a community-building exercise, but also a way to remind people the meaning behind their day off work.
Starting with municipal ordinances in the mid‑1880s and pioneering state laws—Oregon led the way in 1887, followed by states like Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York—more states followed suit. By 1894, 23 states had adopted the holiday—what political scientists call “policy diffusion”—and on June 28 of that year, Congress passed the law making the first Monday in September a national holiday.
There’s a rivalry of sorts over who first proposed the idea—Peter J. McGuire (a noted labor leader) suggested a “general holiday for the laboring classes,” while others credit Matthew Maguire, secretary of a local union, with proposing the concept in the same year. Regardless, it was the Central Labor Union in New York City that organized the first Labor Day parade, held on September 5, 1882, setting the celebratory template of processions, picnics, and public speeches.
Over time, Labor Day has evolved into an annual celebration of American labor or, at least, a day free from labor. For the Lions Club—and by extension, the LEAP Ambassadors—it’s also a way to build stronger communities and remind people the meaning behind the holiday.
The LEAP Center thanks the Lions Club for permitting them to assist with the Flag Project.
Center for Law, Engagement, and Politics 