On Labour Day I Remember My Grandparents . . .

Here is some family history suitable for Labour Day. This picture was taken in 1941 in Kirkland Lake. During the gold miner strike of 1941, the Ontario government marched 500 police down the main street of Kirkland Lake to intimidate the miners. The next day, a two-mile march of women and children showed the mine bosses that the families weren't afraid.

My grandfather on my mother's side was a foreman at the mine. He refused to cross the picket line and was fired on the spot for supporting the workers.

I suspect that my grandmother, with two babies under the age of two was not amused.