Ludlow Massacre Essay

In 1913-1914, miners in Southern Colorado, aggravated by low pay, bad working conditions, and an abusive system, voted to stop working and strike. The Colorado Coal Strikers of 1913-1914 endured harsh living conditions, disease, and oppression in order to better their lives. To resume work, the Rockefellers, who owned the mines, hired gunmen to compel miners to stop the strike, accept poor lifestyles, and get back to work. One of the major events of this strike was the The Ludlow Massacre, where miners and their families were massacred in a garish show of power. The Ludlow Massacre was the Rockefellers’ doing. The Rockefellers cheated workers of money, causing strikes and eventually strikebreaking. They also used their power to strongarm the

The discontent workers of the Colorado mines decided to stop working to go strike. One of the camps formed by these workers was the Ludlow tent camp. This camp was brutally attacked by the National Guard in the coming months. Women, children, and striking miners alike were massacred, all because the Rockefellers refused to shed some wealth. According to “A History of the Colorado Coalfield War” by the Colorado Historical society, the strikes began after the Rockefellers refused to “increase wages... [pay] for ‘dead work’...[have] a miner check the scales...[and have] the right to trade in any store...”(History 1). The miners struck because of poor pay, getting cheated, and being forced to spend money in company owned markets. If the Rockefellers had been willing to lose some money, the miners would not have gone on strike. If the miners did not strike, then the violence used to get them back to work would not have occurred, and the Ludlow Massacre would cease to have ever existed. The miners requests were entirely rejected, without any compromise, so they were forced to work under the same poor pay and conditions as before. The Rockefellers’ greed caused them to cheat miners of their money, and because the miners sought to get what they earned, they were persecuted. The Ludlow Massacre was the Rockefellers fault because if they had been less stingy towards employees, strikes would

After hiring a private agency to terrorize strikers, the Rockefellers realized this was not effective enough. Taking advantage of their influence over others, the Rockefellers sought the help of the media and government to resolve issues. The involvement of the National Guard may seem like the Colorado Governor’s doing, but it was not without pressure from the Rockefellers’ assets. Howard Zinn, in his work Declarations of Independence quotes John Rockefeller, Jr. in that “...another mighty power has been rounded up on behalf of the operators by the getting together of fourteen of the editors of the most important newspapers in the state” (Zinn 1). John Rockefeller, Jr. acknowledges that the Governor’s power was attained not by what he believed was right, but by the power his media had over politicians. If the Governor had refused, he would have likely been crucified by the media. Via utilizing this power, the Rockefellers had just what they needed to take down the strikes: Government influence and gunpower. The powerful family manipulated others into conformity with their will, and did as they pleased with the them as a result. The National Guard that carried out the Ludlow Massacre was funded, supported, and backed by the Rockefellers. This also means that the Rockefellers were accountable for the horrific