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May Day
May A Graphic History of Protest traces the development of International Workers’ Day, May 1st, against the ever-changing economic and political backdrop in Canada. Recognizing the importance of work and the historical struggles of workers to improve their lives, with a particular focus on the struggles of May 1st, the comic includes the reader as part of this history, and the story concludes that “We are all part of this historical struggle; it’s our history and our future.”
32 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2012
95 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
May 21, 2022
really incredible intro/summary into the canadian labour movement and the history of may day. highly highly suggest!
November 10, 2018
A very short and fast read that could be a good introduction to people who are just now learning about the history of May Day, which was basically me a metaphoric second ago so yay.
Written from what appears to be an Ontario perspective there is coverage of the rest of Turtle Island, with some pretty effortless inclusion of female-identified peoples contributions. And while there's a bit of tacit racial diversity included that could have been pushed a bit further I think. Reflecting on diversity I am struck by the lack of representation of disability in workers history comics... I can think of a few reasons why this is, but you would think there could be at least some background characters who were IDK injured on the job? This is one of the intersections I still feel like very much a n00b in this area so I really don't have any idea.
To conclude, I feel like this fills an important niche in working rights comics, which is short intro texts. This book also includes something I love, namely a reading recommendation list.
Written from what appears to be an Ontario perspective there is coverage of the rest of Turtle Island, with some pretty effortless inclusion of female-identified peoples contributions. And while there's a bit of tacit racial diversity included that could have been pushed a bit further I think. Reflecting on diversity I am struck by the lack of representation of disability in workers history comics... I can think of a few reasons why this is, but you would think there could be at least some background characters who were IDK injured on the job? This is one of the intersections I still feel like very much a n00b in this area so I really don't have any idea.
To conclude, I feel like this fills an important niche in working rights comics, which is short intro texts. This book also includes something I love, namely a reading recommendation list.
March 6, 2024
A very short introduction to May Day in comic format. The art work felt very crowded and confusing. Could have been better.
August 8, 2025
Highly highly recommend this to anyone curious about the labor movements in Canada. It’s an excellent introduction to the history of May Day and labor union activism for anyone who isn’t well educated on the topic. Engaging and easy to read!
May 13, 2025
How much do you know about modern working class history? I didn’t until I read this educational graphic novel.
Essential reading for people of all ages in or entering the work-force.
Essential reading for people of all ages in or entering the work-force.
July 16, 2014
Not the most in-depth story as I had hoped it would be, but a great summary/introduction to labour rights in graphical format. Accessible to youth, which would make it a good book to launch a discussion with young people about labour.
I was fascinated to realize the concept of the 8hr work day is 100+years old. So much has changed economically, why haven't labour rights progressed with the change in the type of work?
I was fascinated to realize the concept of the 8hr work day is 100+years old. So much has changed economically, why haven't labour rights progressed with the change in the type of work?
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews