Today is May Day, the day celebrating workers, in Italy. Banks are closed, as are museums and many small stores, but restaurants are typically open. There are no buses (we think this is the only day of the year this is true) and limited public transportation. And this year, because it falls on a Monday, even more things than usual remain closed so that people can celebrate over a long weekend. Here’s how and why, we’ll be celebrating Labor Day in Rome
How to Celebrate Labor Day in Rome?
Labor Day in Rome features a huge concert, il concertone, at San Giovani in Laterano, with about fifty acts, headlined by Ambra Angiolini. Italy’s major unions sponsor it, and it has a labor-based theme. It usually draws about half a million people, making it the largest free concert in Europe. There’s even a contest for would-be singers; the winners will perform. But it’s also on television if – like us – you don’t want to stand outside for eight hours. In major cities, including Rome, there are parades.
As is true in many parts of the world, however, the holiday has become about spending time with family and welcoming spring. The best way to do this, at least according to Italians, is to have a picnic in a park. Even today, when the weather is going to be fairly drizzly, we’re seeing people gathering together outdoors. And – because Italians care about food – the spreads are elaborate, with dishes and tablecloths and many courses. The menu is varied, but fava beans (just arrived in markets) and pecorino romano are a key part of it in Rome.
And the most typical thing to do is to take a trip to the country or the seaside. Labor Day in Rome is often not celebrated in Rome; those with cars head to places like Tivoli or small villages in Lazio. And those without go south, along the Appia Antica. Often with a picnic lunch.
What’s the History of Labor Day?
May 1 celebrates the day American workers began working eight-hour days. The unions had been bargaining for a reduction in hours for years. The new rules were to take effect in 1884, but there were several snags over the next few years. Including some violent demonstrations and bombings (notably the Haymarket Riot in Chicago in 1886). So the decreased hours didn’t take effect until 1890 (and even later in some places in the U.S.). Workers’ unions around the world held similar protests, and chose May 1 as the day to commemorate their struggles.
The U.S. later changed the date of its holiday (it’s now the first Monday in September there). There is debate about whether that was to avoid celebrating the violence associated with May 1, or to disassociate the holiday from socialist movements in Europe. Under the fascists, Labor Day was officially celebrated on the same day as Rome’s birthday, April 21. But most Italians consider the holiday to have been suppressed during those years.
In spite of the rain, we’ll be having our own picnic lunch. (Though we’re retired, we still want to support the workers!)
