Ludlow, CO – On June 27, the United Mineworkers of America (UMWA) hosted a commemoration of the Ludlow Massacre of 1914 at the Ludlow Monument near Trinidad, Colorado. The commemoration was attended by approximately 75 trade unionists and community members to solemnly remember a violent period in Colorado labor history.

The Ludlow Massacre, one of the most explosive periods in U.S. labor history, occurred in 1914 when the Colorado National Guard and company thugs burned striking miners’ tents and shot people in the camp, killing 13 children, two mothers and a number of miners. The massacre marked the climax of a conflict known as the Colorado Coalfield War, a period in 1913 and 1914 in which thousands of miners went on strike against the Rockefeller-owned Colorado Fuel & Iron Company. The miners wanted an eight-hour work day, enforcement of Colorado mining safety laws, and, most importantly, union recognition.

In response to the Ludlow Massacre, the United Mine Workers of America armed around 1000 miners, who shut down more than six mines. For the next ten days, miners were in charge and shot anybody who dared to oppose them with weapons. The Colorado Coalfield War left around 50 coal company thugs and state militiamen dead. Federal troops were called in.

“We coal miners are not bashful; sometimes you have to march, sometimes you have to use a gun, you do what you have to do to survive,” said UMWA District 22 Vice President Michael Dalpiaz, highlighting the determination of the miners at Ludlow. Dalpiaz went on to trace the militant history of the UMWA, from the Battle of Blair Mountain in West Virginia to the Peabody Coal Strike of 1993, stressing the need for militant class-struggle unionism. “If you’re gonna have a cause, you better be ready to fight, because if you don’t fight you won’t get anything,” said Dalpiaz proudly.

Another speaker, Dr. Ericka Wills of the University of Colorado, connected the struggle of the miners at Ludlow to the 2020 uprising in response to the murder of George Floyd. “When you look at the Chicano Movement or the African American Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s or other pivotal periods in U.S. history, you see that the history of labor rights, civil rights, gender rights are all inextricably intertwined,” Wills stated.

Wills also presented a letter of solidarity from the Mexican Miners’ union Los Mineros to the UMWA and the United Steel Workers. “For decades, Los Mineros and the United Steelworkers in the U.S. have worked to represent laborers on both sides of the border. USW and Los Mineros have come together in solidarity and education on both sides of the border,” Wills proclaimed, showcasing the importance of international worker solidarity.

The commemoration ended with a prayer and a call to action to support striking UMWA miners at Warrior Met coal in Alabama, who have been on strike since April 1. Dalpiaz concluded the event by stressing the importance of remembering the martyrs of Ludlow, “This is hallowed ground. This is sacred ground for our union, and we will never, ever forget.”

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Ludlow, CO – On June 23, a commemoration of the Ludlow massacre took place, sponsored by labor unions, local officials and Greek and Greek-American civic and religious organizations. They gathered here to unveil a remarkable memorial: a new statue of strike organizer and Ludlow martyr Louis Tikas.

“Louis Tikas plays an important role in our community’s local history for his contribution to the 1913-14 strike,” said Yolanda Romero, event organizer in Ludlow.

An immigrant from Greece, Tikas was murdered in 1914 during a strike by 13,000 miners. Tikas was responsible for the striking miners’ camp, including women and children, after they were expelled from coal company housing. An eyewitness, a sergeant, said Lieutenant Karl Linderfelt broke a rifle butt over Tikas’ head and ordered him shot during the raid on the miners’ camp. Tikas was later found dead, with two others, shot in the back.

The Ludlow Massacre occurred when the Colorado National Guard and company thugs burned the miners’ tents and shot people in the camp, killing 13 children, two mothers, and number of miners. Folk singer Woody Guthrie memorialized the dead in his famous song Ludlow Massacre.

Miners were demanding an end to company scrip (money), company stores, company doctors, and coal company security goons enforcing a closed camp, like today’s detention centers. The miners wanted an eight-hour work day, enforcement of Colorado mining safety laws, and most importantly – union recognition.

Coal miners in Colorado were ready to strike after hundreds were killed in the years leading up to 1913. In 1910, one explosion killed 79 miners in Colorado. Mine owner John D. Rockefeller wrote in his reply letter, “How come the company is not growing faster?”

In response to the Ludlow Massacre, the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) armed around 1000 miners, who shut down more than six mines. For the next ten days, miners were in charge and shot anybody who dared to oppose them with weapons. The Colorado Coalfield War left around 50 coal company thugs and state militiamen dead. Federal troops were called in to prevent the miners from seizing control.

The coal miners called off the strike in December 1914 with no immediate victory. However, the miners soon made gains in safety standards, including an end to child labor in the coal mines. The Rockefeller-owned mining company soon created a company union.

“I used to be a coal miner, and I stand on the shoulders of these people. They set the table for addressing health and safety issues in the mines, as well as other benefits such as wage increases which have trickled down to workers in other industries,” said Bob Butero, Region 4 Director, UMWA.

Butero concluded, “All workers should remember the sacrifice of martyrs such as Tikas.”

National leaders and rank-and-file members of the UMWA, and Sara Nelson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants, AFL-CIO, attended the unveiling. Also attending were Louis Tikas’ relatives from Greece, members of several Greek-American organizations, and the Honorable Gregory Karahalios, Greek Consul General in Los Angeles, Also honoring Tikas were local government officials from Trinidad and Las Animas County, Colorado, and many supporters from across Colorado.

“If we ask if he lost the battle? At the end, we will say no. He didn’t lose. He might die, but he died for a cause. And his cause is still alive today! We need people like him to be our guiding light in everything we do,” said Consul Karahalios, who spoke with great pride.

Cecil Roberts, president of the United Mine Workers of America, said about Louis Tikas, “He is indeed a hero in the United Mine Workers. He is a working class hero. And he is an American hero.”

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