Haymarket Martyr's Monument, Forest Park, Illinois

The Haymarket Martyr's Monument

"THE DAY WILL COME WHEN OUR SILENCE WILL BE MORE POWERFUL THAN THE VOICES YOU ARE THROTTLING TODAY"


On May 4, 1886, a rally began at Haymarket Square in Chicago near Randolph and Des Plaines Streets. As the rally drew to a close, police were dispatched to disperse the crowd. A homemade bomb exploded and police gunfire erupted, causing fatalities on both sides. Although the bomber was never identified, eight men were indicted and convicted, because their "inflammatory speeches and publications" incited the mob to riot.

On November 11, 1887, at the Criminal Courts Building on Hubbard Street, leaders August Spies, Albert Parsons, George Engel and Adolph Fischer were hanged. Of the other leaders, one committed suicide in prison. Two sentences were reduced to life in prison. One protester remained jailed, although uncharged.

On June 26, 1893, Governor John P. Altgeld reversed former Governor Richard Oglesby's refusal to pardon and granted a full pardon, saying that the conviction-focused jury was so prejudiced by the judge that a fair trial was impossible.
http://www.carpentersunion.org/site/epage/87959_837.htm