Clara Lemlich

Clara LemlichInternational Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union Archives, Kheel Center Collection, Cornell University, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Clara Lemlich led a strike of 20,000 people from 500 factories for one year. She kept leading the strike, even in horrible conditions (being beat up by police and getting thrown in jail). Clara started the strike by interrupting speakers at a meeting. She said that she was tired of just hearing people talk about going on strike and convinced them to actually do it.

Clara Lemlich and other workers convinced others to walk out on their jobs which had horrible working conditions. They started working at 15 years old. They worked from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. All of the doors were locked so they wouldn’t leave. Clara Lemlich and other workers worked 7 days a week. Everybody had a 30 minute lunch break. The most they could earn a week was 6 dollars. These were horrible working conditions.

A Little Background:
Born: January 1st 1886
Died: July 12th 1982
Occupations: Human Rights Worker, Labor Leader, Political Activist, Public Officer and a social Reformer.
Birth Place: Gorodok, Ukraine
Religion: Jewish
-She spent a long life fighting for trade unions, woman's suffrage and peace.

Shirtwaist factory fireUnknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Right after the famous shirtwaist workers strike ended and the Triangle shirtwaist workers went back to work, a cutter dropped his cigar and the whole building went up in flames. The fire started on the 8th floor and there was the 9th and 10th floors above them. They had no idea there was a fire below them. One hundred and forty six girls died because of the locked doors, and they couldn't get out. People felt they knew these girls because they had watched them strike for almost a year for better working conditions. This tragedy proved that things in factories had to change. It was near closing time on a Saturday afternoon on March 25, 1911. The workers were eagerly awaiting the day's pay. Most of them wouldn't make it out.

Overall, Clara Lemlich was a hero. She had the courage to stand up for not just herself, but for others. She was the leader of the Shirtwaist Factory Strike, as well as in the suffrage. She was a hero. A hero is someone with the courage to stand up for yourself as well as for others. You don't have to be famous. You just have to believe in yourself!! :)