Remembering the Black Louisiana Sugar Cane Workers.
Posted by Maestro on 11/23/2024, 8:19 am
On November 23, 1887, the second most bloody labor dispute in U.S. history took place. Between 30 and 60 (possibly many more) unarmed Black sugar cane workers were shot and killed in Thibodaux, Louisiana after striking over their low pay which was only issued in script. Script was basically a coupon redeemable only at the company store owned by the planter. The storeīs prices were normally marked up 100%. According to local historian Stephen Kliebert, "Strikerīs and their family members were rounded up by vigilantes. Many were told to "run for their lives", before being summarily executed. A company of militiamen known as the Shreveport Guards is considered to have taken place in the massacre. Another attempt to organize sugar cane workers in southeast Louisiana would not occur until the 1950īs." Below an article on the descendants of these courageous workers and an image of the worker's original cabins.
