FEBRUARY
1 SATURDAY
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Black labor activists had a tough time during the civil rights movement, says Bob Bruno, cochair of the Chicago Center for Working Class Studies. While many fought for (and won) equal rights inside the union, “outside the workplace, organizations promoting civil rights saw the labor movement as being part of the problem.” How the Great Migration affected labor in Chicago–and vice versa–will be the focus of today’s conference, Labor’s History in the Black Metropolis. Speakers include Timuel Black, former president of the Negro American Labor Council and author of Bridges of Memory: Three Generations of African Americans in Chicago, as well as Addie Wyatt–the first woman and the first African-American to head a Packing-house Workers of America local–and other representatives of various unions. The free event takes place today from 2 to 5 at the Carter G. Woodson Regional Library, 9525 S. Halsted, Chicago; call 312-996-2491.
In 1903 the city’s building department overlooked safety violations and allowed the “absolutely fireproof” Iroquois Theatre to open before it was completed so that developers Harry J. Powers and William J. Davis could draw in holiday crowds. On December 30 the 1,724-seat Randolph Street theater was sold-out (with 200 more standing) for a matinee of the popular musical comedy Mr. Bluebeard. Midway through the second act a spark from a defective light ignited a drop curtain, and the fire quickly spread. Over 600 people were asphyxiated, burned, or trampled to death as they tried to escape through locked exits, making it the deadliest building fire in Chicago history and catalyzing a wave of new fire safety codes. Journalist Nat Brandt will read from and discuss his book Chicago Death Trap: The Iroquois Theatre Fire of 1903 today at 2 at the Chicago Historical Society, 1601 N. Clark in Chicago (312-642-4600). Brandt will also appear Tuesday, March 4, at 1 at Brent Books & Cards, 309 W. Washington in Chicago (312-364-0126), and at 7 at Barbara’s Bookstore, 1350 N. Wells in Chicago (312-642-5044). On Wednesday, March 5, he’ll be at Barnes & Noble, 1701 Sherman in Evanston, at 7 (847-328-0883); on Thursday, March 6, he’ll appear at 5:30 at the Harold Washington Library Center, 400 S. State in Chicago (312-747-4080). All events are free.
Although Jean Baptiste Pointe DuSable built the first permanent home in the Windy City on the north bank of the Chicago River in 1779, the city wasn’t officially founded until 1836. But the Friends of DuSable don’t care; today they’re hosting an event called Celebrating DuSable’s Legacy on Chicago’s 166th Birthday (yeah, I know–I didn’t do the math). It’ll feature performances by Oscar Brown Jr., Maggie Brown and Ben Sexton, the American Indian Center Drum and Dance Group, the Tamboula Haitian Drum and Dance Group, and the DuSable High School Jazz Band. There will also be a reception and private viewing of the ongoing exhibits “John and Sarah: A Family’s Journey to Freedom” and “Rising Above Jim Crow: The Paintings of Johnnie Lee Gray.” The reception starts at 6 and the performance is at 7 at the Chicago Historical Society, 1601 N. Clark, Chicago. Admission is $45, or $20 for the performance alone. Call 312-642-4600 or see www.dusableday.org for more.
