ILWU members gather to honor fallen workers on 90th Anniversary of ‘First Blood’
On May 15, more than 400 ILWU members, pensioners, and officers from Locals 13, 63, 63-OCU, 94, 26, 56, Inlandboatmen’s Union, the LA Port Police, and Federated Auxiliary 8 gathered in Gibson Park for the 22nd Annual First Blood Memorial.
The event also marked the 90th anniversary of the violent clash between dockworkers and company-paid strikebreakers that occurred in Wilmington on May 15th, 1934 which led to the deaths of longshore workers Dickie Parker and John Knudsen. Parker, a 20-year-old San Pedro High School graduate, was shot and killed during the 1934 melee. Knudsen died on June 5, 1934, from injuries he sustained on May 15. Several more workers and allies were subsequently killed during the strike which is commemorated annually as Bloody Thursday.
The event is held every May 15th at noon behind the bust of ILWU co-founder Harry Bridges that faces Harbor Boulevard in downtown San Pedro. The granite stone base lists the names of 70 longshore workers who have died from injuries sustained while working. The names are inscribed in the stone monument as a reminder to all who visit how dangerous the waterfront can be.
The First Blood memorial was initially started to honor the first workers killed during the 1934 West Coast strikes that led to the formation of the ILWU. The memorial event has grown to honor ILWU workers who have been killed on the docks.
The ceremony began with a bagpipe rendition of Amazing Grace followed by the Wilmington VFW Honor Guard and an invocation by Local 13’s Jesse Lopez. During the ceremony, the names of fallen workers were read aloud by pensioners Herman Moreno and Jerry Garretson, and a bell was rung by pensioner Dan Imbagliazzo. The ceremony honors members from the Longshore Division, the Inlandboatmen’s Union, the ILWU’s Marine Division, and port security guards from Local 26.
Southern California Pensioner President Greg Mitre was the event emcee. He connected the importance of remembering the workers killed during the 1934 West Coast Waterfront Strike and those who died in tragic accidents on the waterfront. “Workers put their lives on the line for what they believed in. And that’s one of the reasons why we come here every May 15. We commemorate and we honor them,” Mitre said. “Tragically, we’ve had to put 70 names on this memorial. We all know we work in a very dangerous industry. We move more cargo here than anybody else in the world and accidents happen. We’ve had to learn to deal with it. But we don’t want to ever forget it.”
ILWU International Vice President Bobby Olvera, Jr. spoke about the importance of honoring legacy and fostering intergenerational connections.
“Giving back is for both sides, for the young to ask the questions of the old-timers and for the old-timers, it’s incumbent upon us to talk to the young workers that have some passion, to continue to have this going for another 90 years,” Olvera said. ”If you’re an old timer, grab a youngster and tell them something they don’t know about how the jobs used to be. For young workers, talk to the old timers and ask them how we got the safety code that we have. It wasn’t because the employers gave it to us. It’s because of the sacrifices of the men and women who worked on the waterfront for over 90 years–trial and error, accident and injury, accident and death. That is how we got the safety book. It’s not just something to prop up your stereo in the UTR. It’s not just something to have in your work bag. It’s something to live by every single day.”
Local 13 President Gary Herrera expressed his gratitude for the generations that came before him that helped build the foundation that the ILWU is built on.
“We must remember how blessed we are every day we wake up,” Herrera said. ”Dickey Parker was one day registered and he took it upon himself to fight for what we don’t fight for in our lifetime. I make it a point to come by this park every day and give a salute to Harry Bridges and all the men who have died listed on this plaque behind me. I hope and pray as a third-generation longshoreman that I’m making my dad and grandpa proud.”
Special guests at the memorial included Los Angeles City Council member Tim McOsker and a representative from Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn’s office.
Immediately following the ceremony, a picnic lunch was served featuring tacos, bacon-wrapped hot dogs, corn on the cob, and commemorative “First Blood 90th Anniversary” cookies.
