 Every year, on May 1st, communist parties, trade unions and all sections of the working class across the world come together to celebrate International Workers Day. May Day honours the struggles of generations of workers and pays homage to comrades who sacrificed their lives for a better world. The story of May Day begins in the 18th and 19th centuries. At the peak of the Industrial Revolution, factories were booming and capitalists were flourishing. But for the millions of workers who produced all this wealth, it seemed the choice was between stark poverty or death. Across the world, workers refused to accept this choice. Throughout the 19th century, their movements grew in strength. In 1848, Karl Marx gave the iconic call. The Pluritarians have nothing to lose but their chains. They have a world to win, workers of all countries unite. In the following decades, workers' organisations became a powerful force worldwide. The slogan was 8 hours for work, 8 hours for rest, 8 hours for what we will. The struggle was to begin on May 1, 1886, in Chicago. On that day, 80,000 protesters gathered at Michigan Avenue. Protests were organised on May 2nd as well. But on May 3rd, the police attacked and killed picketing workers at the McCormick Reaper Plant at West and Blue Island avenues. On May 4th, a bomb exploded at a protest gathering to condemn police brutality. Using this pretext, the police opened fire again, killing four workers. In 1886, August Spice, Adolf Fischer, George Engel and Albert Parsons were hanged on charges of involvement in the bomb explosion. Their trial was marked with irregularities. The cause of the 8-hour workday, however, continued to inspire workers. The 2nd International called for a global mobilisation on May 1st, 1890, for the 8-hour day. This was the first May Day celebration. In the following years and to this day, May Day mobilisations see working class movements lead the struggle for peace, equality, democracy and labour rights. As an Italian newspaper pro-claimed in 1891, the 1st of May is the festival of the workers of the entire world.