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NewsBriefs.2:Sept 9/30/08 1:38 PM Page 10 CNA/NNOC members and staff march in an Indiana Labor Day celebration. opposite: (Above) Ohio RNs Michelle Wells and Adrienne Zurub take to the streets of Cleveland with Cuyahoga County Commissioner Peter Lawson Jones. (Below) RNs wave to the crowd from a double-decker bus in Long Beach, Calif. Remembering the Meaning of Labor Day o many Americans, Labor Day simply means a day off and maybe a barbeque at the park. Most of us never stop to reflect on the origin of the holiday: it was the labor movement that proposed one day each year should be set aside to celebrate the contributions of the American worker. The New York Central Labor Union first floated the idea of a labor day and celebrated it in 1882. The concept grew along with the labor movement, spreading to other states, and in 1894, Congress adopted Labor Day as an official federal holiday. This year, CNA/NNOC RN members and staff proudly joined in Labor Day celebrations all over the T 10 REGISTERED NURSE country to commemorate the original spirit of the holiday. In Petersburg, Ind., CNA/NNOC affiliated with and marched in the state's oldest Labor Day celebration.The Labor Day Association, comprising 67 affiliated local unions from southern Indiana, southern Illinois, and western Kentucky, stages what is possibly the second-oldest continuous Labor Day event in the United States. The Knights of Labor in 1886 began the Indiana celebration with local unions as far away as Chicago. Every year since 1886 then, area labor groups have hosted a Labor Day parade and event. W W W. C A L N U R S E S . O R G This year's event was highly publicized with newspaper, radio, and television coverage. The Evansville Courier and Press featured a front-page interview with past Labor Day Association President Gary Fritz, who is now Midwest Region Director for CNA/NNOC. In Cleveland, Ohio, CNA/NNOC registered nurses marched through the center of the city's 11th Congressional District along with other unions and advocacy groups, like the Single-Payer Action Network. Many in the crowd cheered for the nurses and called out "Yeah—patients' rights!" Nurses had the opportunity to speak and give literature to several elected officials, SEPTEMBER 2008