Thoughts and Events on Labor Day in Shanghai 2021

May 1^st 2021

Thoughts and Events on Labor Day in Shanghai

China has several public holidays of national character. These holidays include May 1st–Labor Day. Until 2008, this holiday was celebrated for seven days, however later the Chinese government decided to reduce the number of off-days to three in favor of other traditional Chinese holidays.

The history of the “International Workers’ Day” in China started in 1919 with demonstrations in Shanghai. The following year, in 1920, Beijing and Shanghai held the first-ever demonstrations in China to honor all workers.

During the “cultural revolution,” Labor Day was considered almost the most important holiday in the country. Public rallies were devoted to advocate workers’ rights to a safe working environment. and street demonstrations across China were organized to celebrate the first of May.  Given the success of these demonstrations, the Chinese Communist Party in 1949 officially named May 1st as a public holiday of seven full days—“the Golden week” it was called.

As the prosperity of China has steadily increased, Labor Day has gradually become a cheerful family holiday. Reduced from seven to three days in 2008, the Chinese usually go to the country, meet friends, or attend artistic events. Many people visit theaters and exhibitions. Worker demonstrations and performances have nearly all disappeared.

 

[Photo shown is an International Labor Day demonstration in the USA during the 40s]

 

 

When I was a young boy, May 1^st was traditionally set aside to have processions that culminated with the Blessed Virgin Mary being crowned as “Queen of Heaven.”  When I attended Holy Cross Grade School in the late 40s and early 50s, we always looked forward to this “May crowning” that the Ursuline Sisters had created for us.  It was considered a special privilege to have been chosen to crown the life-size statue of Mary with a crown made of flowers.  I was never chosen for this honor.

These are the thoughts that I was having on the metro as it traced the 10-mile route from our home to the museum that Elena had chosen for us to visit today.  At it turned out, this was the opening day (01 May 2021) of a special exhibit that featured the early, middle, and late works of Wasile Kandinsky, “the pioneer of abstract art.”

During the 40-minute metro ride, Elena tells me how she was alerted by one of the gate-keepers at our housing compound saying, “Be careful when you take your dogs outside the compound today. A new law requires anyone walking a dog to have the dog on a leash and to carry dog registration cards.”

This is extremely interesting.  Elena is universally recognized as the “guardian of all stray dogs” in our compound.  Complete strangers have been known to consult her on dog matters.  The gate-keepers know that the law requires that each household have only ONE dog.  Nonetheless, because Elena cares for stray dogs and cats, the gate-keepers undoubtedly make an exception for her because, here in China, it is very rare to find any official refuge for stray dogs.

The art exhibit was of great interest to me.  It showed me many interesting things.  Kandinsky was a Russian citizen trained both in art and in law.  Seemingly he practiced law and, only when he turned 30, did he decide to take the risk of pursuing his art full time.  The book and the film, “Doctor Zhivago, presents the same tumultuous period in Russian history.  You may recall the scene where Doctor Zhivago is looking outside when the Communists are holding a very quiet protest of men, women, and children in the street where he lived.  Then, quite suddenly, the silent protesters are attacked by horse-mounted soldiers wielding swords that charged through the protesters and cut down anyone who happened to be in their path.  Zhivago responds by going out with his medical bag to give aid to the few who have been injured but not killed.  A sympathetic onlooker warns Zhivago  to get inside since the Czar has authorized this attack and anyone aiding of abetting the Communists would surely be arrested.

Kandinsky leaves Russia after the Communist Revolution of 1917 and finds refuge in Germany.  Here he continues as an artist until Hitler takes power in 1922.  He knows full well that his abstract art is despised by the National Socialist Party as “useless.”  So, he leaves Germany for France.

Now my attention now shifts from Kandinsky to the dozen Chinese children, ages 8 to 10, who are listening with rapt attention to their “art teacher” who is unfolding for them “the genius” of Kandinsky’s creation of what has come to be known as abstract art.  This small band is surrounded by 15 to 18 parents who are attentive to what the children are leaning because, most probably, they have never had a single lesson in abstract art themselves.  It appears that each child (as shown) has a little notebook and is making a record of what they have discovered in one or more of Kandinsky’s paintings.  Since all of this is taking place in Mandarin, I have no accurate idea of what their “art teacher” is saying to them and what they have entered in their notebooks.

I am amazed that these children have an interest in abstract art as done by an early pioneer.  Elena tells me that programs like this are found nearly everywhere because parents recognize that their children are preparing to live in a world that is entirely different from the one that their parents and grandparents inhabited.  At this point, you might recall that the Cultural Revolution in China during the years 1960-1980 was a period when any art form (paintings, music, dance) that did not originate in China was despised as “inferior” and was therefore “absolutely forbidden.”

After the exhibit, we walked about a mile to visit a Western-style bakery and ice-cream parlor.  I notice a man in his 40s wearing a tee shirt with the words, “God save the Queen,” printed in large bold letters.  I say to him, “God save the Queen.” He returns a puzzled look.

This is not the first time that I encountered someone wearing an article of clothing that contains a written message.  Every Chinese person under 30 has many articles of clothing (usually sweat shirts, coats, and ball caps) that contain English words.  Only a very small number, however, have any idea what their “New York Yankees” or “God save the Queen” labels are all about.  Chinese young people, more especially, listen to American pop music and wear American style clothing.  Most are fascinated by America and hope to visit it one day.  While getting ready to cross the street, I notice a young man wearing a sweat shirt that I find very attractive.  It reads, “THE DARK SOUL OF MAN.”  Dark, indeed.

On the metro, I see a thin Chinese girl wearing jeans that are prewashed and worn-through on the knees.  Gasp!  For most Chinese, this must look like discarded clothing worn by someone very poor.  But it is not so.  Just a young girl trying out an American brand of jeans.

After enjoying a caramel ice cream topped with a dozen crystals of salt (Yummy!), I go to the counter where I can drink a cup of warm water.  While drinking the water, a complete stranger, a Chinese woman in her 40s, comes up to me and says, in perfect Midwestern English, “Welcome to China.”

Such a warm greeting is a rare event here is Shanghai.  Everyone keeps to themselves, and it is considered “impolite” to address a stranger.  With the Covid-19 scare, 80% of all English-speaking foreigners have left Shanghai.  This woman undoubtedly thought of me as a sign that the Americans were returning, and, as a result, I enjoyed her warm welcome.

While walking toward the metro, we pass a very old and well established School for Buddhist Studies.  Elena passed this school on a regular basis when she attends her yoga classes.  “I was always curious but never made the effort to go in,” Elena admits.  “Why no now,” I suggest.  Thus we enter the large, ancient door and are immediately greeted by the gate keeper.  He explains that the school is closed during the May Day period.  He allows us to make a tour of the school.  We enter the main meditation hall and this is what we see.  It is customary to have Buddhist statues that are very ornate and guilded with thin layers of gold.  Bowls of rice and water are traditionally set before the Buddha.  To the left, we discovered the wooden supports that enable students to chant their sutras and to maintain a meditation posture for an extended period.  This brings to mind my own practice of Buddhism back in the USA.

Buddhism came to China from India in the sixth century.  In China, one finds thousands of shrines and monasteries.  Like any other religious activity in China, the Chinese Communist Party makes provisions to protect the right of Chinese citizens (and foreigners) to study and to practice Buddhism.  The 2008 law also protects religious activities in so far as atheists are not allowed to disrupt religious activities or to openly abuse religious practitioners.  In turn, Buddhist are not permitted to engage in public recruitment or to conduct religious rites outside of their school compound or outside of their home. Official statistics don’t exist [the government never asks citizens to declare their religious affiliation], but the Pew Research Center, which surveys religious belief worldwide, estimates some 245 million Buddhists in China, around 18% of the total national population.  President Xi is not shy about visiting Buddhist centers and being photographed with Buddhists.  The Chinese Communist Party has a very mixed relationship with Tibetian Buddhism.  On the one hand, the Party has forcibly forbidden any monk from holding any public office in Tibet.  On the other hand, several government-funded Tibetan Buddhism colleges are under construction in areas with significant ethnic Tibetan populations. The government strives to draw more monks to study in the colleges, so as to cultivate qualified Tibetan Buddhists who are highly educated and politically reliable.  The key words here are “government-funded” and “politically reliable.”  Click here for more details.  

On the metro returning home, the trains were still quite crowded.  Elena managed to find a seat, and I stood in front of her and our conversation continued.  Then, quite unexpectedly, a Chinese man sitting next to Elena, got up and offered me his seat.  I thanked him in Mandarin.

Elena says to me, “He is probably getting off at the next stop.”  Not so.  He stays on for six more stops.  I even notice that he is stretching his lower back from time to time—a sign that he has lower-back troubles.  In effect, even due to the fact that I have twice his age and a stronger back, he gave his seat to me.  Elena remarks to me, “How nice it is to live in a culture where the elderly are respected.”

As we continue our ride home, I was attracted by a young married couple whose four-year-old son was sleeping in his father’s lap.  I took out my iPhone and gave the dad a signal that I’d like to take a picture of his son.  He nods and then begins to wake his son.  I stop him, and he allows his son to continue sleeping.  It never occurred to him that I would like to get a photo of someone sleeping.  But even more importantly, I am surprised that he would walk his sleeping son when I, a total stranger and a foreigner, ask him (in sign language) to take a picture of his son.

I never cease to be amazed how different these Chinese are from myself.  It delights me that they take me into account and that all the nasty anti-Chinese propaganda occasioned by our ex-president has not turned their love into hate.

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Appendix: The Chinese did not invent Labor Day.  It was started (believe it or not) in the USA:

On May 1st of 1886, Chicago (along with other cities) was the site of major union walk-out demonstrations in support of the eight-hour workday. [Most paid workers at that time had contracts that required that they work six days a week for ten or twelve hours.] The Chicago protests were meant to be part of several days of action. On May 3, a strike at the McCormick Reaper plant in the city turned violent [a policeman shot and killed a striker]; the next day, a peaceful meeting at Haymarket Square became even more so [violent]. Here’s how TIME summed it up in 1938:

A few minutes after ten o’clock on the night of May 4, 1886, a storm began to blow up in Chicago. As the first drops of rain fell, a crowd in Haymarket Square, in the packing house district, began to break up. At eight o’clock there had been 3,000 persons on hand, listening to anarchists [a pejorative word used to characterize all the union organizers] denounce the brutality of the police and demand the eight-hour day, but by ten [p.m.] there were only a few hundred. The mayor, who had waited around in expectation of trouble, went home, and went to bed. The last speaker was finishing his talk when a delegation of 180 policemen marched from the station a block away to break up what remained of the meeting. They stopped a short distance from the speaker’s wagon. As a captain ordered the meeting to disperse, and the speaker cried out that it was a peaceable gathering, a bomb exploded in [front of] the police ranks. It wounded 67 policemen, of whom seven died. The police opened fire, killing several men and wounding 200, and the Haymarket Tragedy became a part of U. S. history.

In 1889, the International Socialist Conference declared that, in commemoration of the Haymarket affair, May 1st would become an international holiday for labor, and it was known in many places as International Workers’ Day.

In the USA, May 1st came in for particular contempt during the anti-communist fervor of the early Cold War. [Remember the nation-wide anti-communist and anti-Jewish sermons of Fr. Charles Coglin (1936-1942) and the attempts of Senator Joseph McCarthy (1949-1954) to smear American communist sympathizers as subversives intent upon overthrowing democracy.]

CLICK HERE FOR A SPECIAL SURPRISE  In July of 1958, President Eisenhower signed a resolution renaming May 1^st as “Loyalty Day” in an attempt to avoid any hint of solidarity with the labor unions and the “workers of the world” on May Day. The resolution declared that it would be “a special day for the reaffirmation of loyalty to the United States of America and for the recognition of the heritage of American freedom.”  After 1958, Labor Day gradually became a day for family picnics or a ball game. It completely lost sight of workers’ rights.

For some pics of “May Day Celebrations Around the World” (BBC) go to https://www.bbc.com/news/in-pictures-52501211

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Anything especially capture your attention?  Have any questions?  Please consider writing your comments below.

Peace and joy from Aaron