The Haymarket Incident took place on May 4, 1886, and was, actually, working people’s response to police brutality displayed a fay before during a strike of workers at the McCormick Reaper Works. During that event, several workers were killed by the police, and August Spies, an anarchist leader, urged people to come to Haymarket Square to protest against that kind of police brutality. Several speakers addressed the crowd of approximately 2,000 that came to the square, and at the end of the rally, somebody (who was never identified) threw a bomb at a group of police officers. Seven police officers and one worker were killed, while many others were injured. Eventually, eight people were convicted, although their involvement was not properly supported by evidence. The trial facilitated the effect of the Haymarket Incident as people were divided into two groups, those supporting the radical methods to fight against injustice and those supporting more peaceful forms. Business owners managed to take control over their workers and made working conditions even harsher.
The aftermaths of the riot were considerable for the USA and the entire world. One of the effects was the establishment of May Day, when workers all over the world ran demonstrations to fight for their rights. More importantly, the incident made workers more consolidated and concentrated on legal forms of protest. People joined unions and became more active in fighting for such modern labor basics as an eight-hour working day. The Knights of Labor became a powerful organization, including thousands of people. This organization, as well as many other unions, started using less radical tactics as the Haymarket Incident revealed that radicalization led to the polarization of society and more violence and victims on both sides.
