Today, New York City is marking the 105th anniversary of one of the city’s worst industrial fire disasters in its history.
It is a grim reminder of the horrible state of some of those factories, even in USA, before the first world war.
It is also a firm warning, yet again, to today’s local governments, world over, on the importance of civil defence and of labour legislations and inspections - to ensure safe working conditions.
On 25 March 1911, a total of 146 people - 129 women and 17 men - perished in a matter of just 30 minutes - in a huge fire likely to have been sparked by a discarded cigarette.
Apparently, The Triangle factory, which made shirtwaists, and blouses, was being run like a sweatshop.
Poor immigrant workers, mostly European and Jewish teenaged women, some as young as 13 or 14, who did not speak English were given barely 15 dollars a week. For a work of 12 hours a day.
These workers, of over 500, were confined to closed spaces on the top three floors of a 10-storey Asch building, near Washington Square Park, in Manhattan, New York.
With plenty of, easily inflammable, cotton, paper, and garment waste around, the fire spread rapidly engulfing the entire building.
The elevators stopped working. The one narrow staircase was just not enough. And the fire-escape stairway broke completely under the weight of scores of people trying to escape the fire.
The ladders of the fire engines could only reach up to 6 floors, while the factory was on the 8th , 9th and 10th floors.
Many women jumped, and died, trying to flee the conflagration. Those who did not succeed in jumping, also died. Charred beyond recognition.
I was saddened to read, now, about a 13 year old girl at this Wednesday’s (23 March 2016) commemoration ceremony held at the same building - which is now called Brown Building and owned by New York University.
The girl apparently spoke about her great-grand mother who worked in the Triangle factory. And she also spoke about making a classroom presentation about the Triangle Factory tragedy, and that her classmates cried when she said that some girls at the factory were as young as they were; and they could have easily been sitting with them in that class.
Does this tragedy not remind us of an even worse disaster related to garment workers, in Bangladesh, three years ago?
On 24 April 2013, a total of 1,130 workers were killed when an eight-storey commercial building, named Rana Plaza, collapsed in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.
What I found extremely ironical was when I read that the first large-scale strike of women workers in USA was in 1910, by the International Ladies Garment Workers’ Union. They were demanding their union’s recognition, higher wages, and better working conditions.
And where did they protest? Outside Triangle Shirtwaist Factory. But in one year’s time, the fire tragedy occurred at that very place.
Also ironical is the fact that when some cracks appeared in that building in Bangladesh, some shops closed. But, ignoring warning, the garment workers were ordered to return. But in just one day’s time, the collapse, and the deaths, occurred.
Today, in the Arabian gulf, with its thousands of migrant workers, it is imperative that governments and businesses do their utmost to ensure safe working, and living, conditions.
What is the use of history, if we do not learn from the lessons it teaches?
It is a grim reminder of the horrible state of some of those factories, even in USA, before the first world war.
It is also a firm warning, yet again, to today’s local governments, world over, on the importance of civil defence and of labour legislations and inspections - to ensure safe working conditions.
On 25 March 1911, a total of 146 people - 129 women and 17 men - perished in a matter of just 30 minutes - in a huge fire likely to have been sparked by a discarded cigarette.
Apparently, The Triangle factory, which made shirtwaists, and blouses, was being run like a sweatshop.
Poor immigrant workers, mostly European and Jewish teenaged women, some as young as 13 or 14, who did not speak English were given barely 15 dollars a week. For a work of 12 hours a day.
These workers, of over 500, were confined to closed spaces on the top three floors of a 10-storey Asch building, near Washington Square Park, in Manhattan, New York.
With plenty of, easily inflammable, cotton, paper, and garment waste around, the fire spread rapidly engulfing the entire building.
The elevators stopped working. The one narrow staircase was just not enough. And the fire-escape stairway broke completely under the weight of scores of people trying to escape the fire.
The ladders of the fire engines could only reach up to 6 floors, while the factory was on the 8th , 9th and 10th floors.
Many women jumped, and died, trying to flee the conflagration. Those who did not succeed in jumping, also died. Charred beyond recognition.
I was saddened to read, now, about a 13 year old girl at this Wednesday’s (23 March 2016) commemoration ceremony held at the same building - which is now called Brown Building and owned by New York University.
The girl apparently spoke about her great-grand mother who worked in the Triangle factory. And she also spoke about making a classroom presentation about the Triangle Factory tragedy, and that her classmates cried when she said that some girls at the factory were as young as they were; and they could have easily been sitting with them in that class.
Does this tragedy not remind us of an even worse disaster related to garment workers, in Bangladesh, three years ago?
On 24 April 2013, a total of 1,130 workers were killed when an eight-storey commercial building, named Rana Plaza, collapsed in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.
What I found extremely ironical was when I read that the first large-scale strike of women workers in USA was in 1910, by the International Ladies Garment Workers’ Union. They were demanding their union’s recognition, higher wages, and better working conditions.
And where did they protest? Outside Triangle Shirtwaist Factory. But in one year’s time, the fire tragedy occurred at that very place.
Also ironical is the fact that when some cracks appeared in that building in Bangladesh, some shops closed. But, ignoring warning, the garment workers were ordered to return. But in just one day’s time, the collapse, and the deaths, occurred.
Today, in the Arabian gulf, with its thousands of migrant workers, it is imperative that governments and businesses do their utmost to ensure safe working, and living, conditions.
What is the use of history, if we do not learn from the lessons it teaches?
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