A Day For Our Modern Heroes
By: Renielle Campos Photo By: Alona Myka Balbastro International Workers' Day, also known as Labor Day in some countries and often referred to as May Day, is a celebration of laborers and the working classes that are promoted by the international labor movement. In the Philippines, May 1 is known as "Labor Day" (Filipino: Araw ng Manggagawa, also known as Araw ng Paggawa) and is a public holiday in the Philippines. On this day, labor organizations and unions hold protests in major cities. On 1 May 1903, during the American colonial period, the Unión Obrera Democrática Filipina (Filipino Democratic Labor Union) held a rally in front of the Malacañang Palace demanding workers' economic rights and Philippine independence. In 1908, the Philippine Assembly passed a bill officially recognizing May 1 as a national holiday. In 1913, the first official celebration was held on 1 May 1913 when 36 labor unions convened for a congress in Manila. During the Presidency of Gloria