I just read about an event in American History I'd never heard of before--The Ludlow Massacre. Basically, what happened was that in 1914, thousands of coal mine workers in Ludlow, Colorado went on strike against low pay, dangerous conditions, and feudal domination of their lives in towns completely controlled by the mining companies.
When the strike began, the miners were evicted from their homes in the mining towns, they were attacked by men hired by the mining companies, the National Guard was sent in--not to protect the miners--but to help break the strike. In the end, corporate interests and the government won, and sixty-six men, women, and children had been killed.
Question: Why didn't I learn about this in school? Why didn't I learn more about class conflict in America in school? I suppose acknowledging that there is, and has always been, class conflict in America means doing away with the comfortable illusion that, in America, everyone is equal.
