a brief history of May 1

While much of the rest of the world (and indeed, many in the US) celebrated May Day or some variant thereof on Monday, the US had - no, really - "Loyalty Day." What in the name of bizarre propaganda inventions, you may be asking, is Loyalty Day? King George'll tell ya - it apparently has a lot to do with the "light of freedom" and "support[ing] our troops," and not so much with the 8-hour workday.

And, continuing with the chain of creepy, fascistic names, Loyalty Day - first proclaimed by President Eisenhower - replaced a prior holiday on May 1, known as "Americanization Day." As if this all weren't already enough to drive you into a chorus of Sieg Heils, then wait, there's more; May 1 is also "Law Day," which calls for red-blooded gringos to celebrate a "reaffirmation of their loyalty to the United States" and a "cultivation of the respect for law", which, of course, both directly opposed everything that the non-jingoist version of May 1 signifies.

You just couldn't make this shit up - no, not even us at Que Se Vayan Todos, the most jaded and cynical of the most jaded and cynical, though apparently not enough in either category to approach reality.

Tags: [May 1, May Day]