Triangle Shirtwaist Fire

A century after the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire claimed the lives of 146 seamstresses in New York, worker protections are eroding around the world. As government and corporate interests from Bangladesh to Wisconsin wage war on the rights of labor, have the lessons of the Triangle disaster been forgotten?

For many people, Labor Day marks the end of summer, the last day on which you can tastefully wear white shoes, or the beginning of football season. The lack of a clear connection to labor itself is hardly surprising. As the United States economy has moved away from manufacturing, the idea of a day...