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what is labour day and why do people say you shouldnt wear white after labour day?

2007-08-20 09:47:36 · 9 answers · asked by crazylegs 1 in Education & Reference Words & Wordplay

9 answers

Labor Day is an American holiday creating a day off for, basically, anyone who works. It's an unofficial end of summer, the last chance to vacation and such.

To not wear white after labor day is a silly old fashion custom that is generally ignored by anyone with any sense (fashion sense or otherwise).

2007-08-20 09:55:01 · answer #1 · answered by Katelyn 2 · 1 1

Labor Day occurs on the first Monday in September. It celebrates working people - anyone who "labors" or has a job.
It is also traditionally the end of summer and the beginning of fall, since most schools start session just after Labor Day. Fashion-wise, white is considered appropriate for summer (when everyone is tan from being outdoors), but is not appropriate for fall. It's an old tradition, and a little silly, but that's what it came from.

2007-08-20 09:53:05 · answer #2 · answered by teresathegreat 7 · 4 0

Orginall enacted for the country to show it's appreciation to the work force, i.e. factory workers in the country.
As far as wearing white after Labor day. That was the fashion designer crowd that came up with that idea. Wild guess on my part it was to get you to buy more clothes and shoes.
But all that stuff is a girl thing and I'm not into that so don't know. I'll leave that to you girls.
If mine says she wants me to go shopping with her, I'm out the door headed for the lake or woods as soon as she gets in the tub.

2007-08-20 09:56:35 · answer #3 · answered by JUAN FRAN$$$ 7 · 0 0

A Labour Day is an annual holiday celebrated all over the world that resulted from efforts of the labour union movement, to celebrate the economic and social achievements of workers.

The celebration of Labour Day has its origins in the eight hour day movement, which advocated eight hours for work, eight hours for recreation, and eight hours for rest. On 21 April 1856 Stonemasons and building workers on building sites around Melbourne, Australia, stopped work and marched from the University of Melbourne to Parliament House to achieve an eight hour day. Their direct action protest was a success, and they are noted as the first organized workers in the world to achieve an eight hour day with no loss of pay, which subsequently inspired the celebration of Labour Day and May Day.

2007-08-20 09:54:24 · answer #4 · answered by nia s 1 · 2 1

Labor Day 2014

2014-08-27 20:01:19 · answer #5 · answered by swapnil 2 · 0 0

A celebration of and by Trade Unionists. It falls at the beginning of September which in many places is more Fall than Summer-like; hence the whiteout.

2007-08-20 09:54:33 · answer #6 · answered by picador 7 · 1 0

Labour day?

2014-12-03 12:17:14 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0 0

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2015-12-08 14:12:00 · answer #8 · answered by ? 3 · 0 0

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2015-12-06 10:09:16 · answer #9 · answered by ? 3 · 0 0

The History of Labor Day
Labor Day: How it Came About; What it Means

"Labor Day differs in every essential way from the other holidays of the year in any country," said Samuel Gompers, founder and longtime president of the American Federation of Labor. "All other holidays are in a more or less degree connected with conflicts and battles of man's prowess over man, of strife and discord for greed and power, of glories achieved by one nation over another. Labor Day...is devoted to no man, living or dead, to no sect, race, or nation."

Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.

Founder of Labor Day



More than 100 years after the first Labor Day observance, there is still some doubt as to who first proposed the holiday for workers.

Some records show that Peter J. McGuire, general secretary of the Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and a cofounder of the American Federation of Labor, was first in suggesting a day to honor those "who from rude nature have delved and carved all the grandeur we behold."

But Peter McGuire's place in Labor Day history has not gone unchallenged. Many believe that Matthew Maguire, a machinist, not Peter McGuire, founded the holiday. Recent research seems to support the contention that Matthew Maguire, later the secretary of Local 344 of the International Association of Machinists in Paterson, N.J., proposed the holiday in 1882 while serving as secretary of the Central Labor Union in New York. What is clear is that the Central Labor Union adopted a Labor Day proposal and appointed a committee to plan a demonstration and picnic.

The First Labor Day



The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. The Central Labor Union held its second Labor Day holiday just a year later, on September 5, 1883.

In 1884 the first Monday in September was selected as the holiday, as originally proposed, and the Central Labor Union urged similar organizations in other cities to follow the example of New York and celebrate a "workingmen's holiday" on that date. The idea spread with the growth of labor organizations, and in 1885 Labor Day was celebrated in many industrial centers of the country.

Labor Day Legislation



Through the years the nation gave increasing emphasis to Labor Day. The first governmental recognition came through municipal ordinances passed during 1885 and 1886. From them developed the movement to secure state legislation. The first state bill was introduced into the New York legislature, but the first to become law was passed by Oregon on February 21, 1887. During the year four more states — Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York — created the Labor Day holiday by legislative enactment. By the end of the decade Connecticut, Nebraska, and Pennsylvania had followed suit. By 1894, 23 other states had adopted the holiday in honor of workers, and on June 28 of that year, Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September of each year a legal holiday in the District of Columbia and the territories.

A Nationwide Holiday



The form that the observance and celebration of Labor Day should take were outlined in the first proposal of the holiday — a street parade to exhibit to the public "the strength and esprit de corps of the trade and labor organizations" of the community, followed by a festival for the recreation and amusement of the workers and their families. This became the pattern for the celebrations of Labor Day. Speeches by prominent men and women were introduced later, as more emphasis was placed upon the economic and civic significance of the holiday. Still later, by a resolution of the American Federation of Labor convention of 1909, the Sunday preceding Labor Day was adopted as Labor Sunday and dedicated to the spiritual and educational aspects of the labor movement.

The character of the Labor Day celebration has undergone a change in recent years, especially in large industrial centers where mass displays and huge parades have proved a problem. This change, however, is more a shift in emphasis and medium of expression. Labor Day addresses by leading union officials, industrialists, educators, clerics and government officials are given wide coverage in newspapers, radio, and television.

The vital force of labor added materially to the highest standard of living and the greatest production the world has ever known and has brought us closer to the realization of our traditional ideals of economic and political democracy. It is appropriate, therefore, that the nation pay tribute on Labor Day to the creator of so much of the nation's strength, freedom, and leadership — the American worker.

As with many customs and etiquette dictums, it's difficult to pin down the reason behind the prohibition against white after Labor Day. We searched on variations of "wear white after Labor Day" and sifted through the Etiquette and Fashion categories in the Yahoo! Directory. We managed to turn up a bit of information on the fashion dictate.
Originally, the rule was more along the lines of "Only wear white shoes between Memorial Day and Labor Day." Furthermore, it mainly applied to white pumps or dress shoes. White tennis shoes and off-white boots seem exempt, as are any shoes worn by a winter bride. "Winter white" clothing (e.g., cream-colored wool) is acceptable between Labor Day and Memorial Day too.

The only logical reasoning we could find cited temperature. Image consultant Nancy Penn suggests that because white reflects light and heat, wearing white would make you cooler in winter, and thus should be avoided. But others suggest the rule stems from a class issue. Acting Director of the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology Valerie Steele notes that in the late 19th century and the 1950s, more people were entering the middle classes. These nouveau-riche folks were often unaware of the standards of high society, so they were given specific codified rules to follow in order to fit in.

Several sites quoted a charming refrain about G.R.I.T.S. -- girls raised in the South. This bit of folklore states, "Southern girls know bad manners when they see them," and a clear sign of bad manners is wearing white shoes before Easter or after Labor Day. Because fashions in the American South can be a little more formal than elsewhere, perhaps the no-white-shoes rule came from south of the Mason-Dixon Line? Even Star Jones (an otherwise fashion-forward Southern lady) admits that white shoes "are for Easter Sunday and not the dead of winter."

We can only surmise that the point of this rule is to ensure that people only wear summer fashions during the actual summer months. The opposite probably applies as well, but people generally don't need to be reminded to avoid wearing a goose-down parka in 100-degree weather. If you live in a locale with summer temperatures year-round, we can't see the harm in wearing white shoes or a head-to-toe white outfit in October. And we promise not to tell Miss Manners.

2007-08-20 09:56:45 · answer #10 · answered by yancychipper 6 · 4 2

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