LAWRENCE — Labor history and ethnic diversity take center stage for the 25th year of the Bread & Roses Festival on Campagnone Common this Monday.
"It's unbelievable," said festival committee Chairman Jim Beauchesne. "To think we've kept it going with an all-volunteer committee, it's quite an accomplishment."
The festival commemorates the Bread and Roses Strike of 1912 — a turning point in national labor relations with origins right here in Lawrence.
This year, performers include Puerto Plata, an 84-year old legend performing classic Dominican and other Caribbean sounds; Zili Misik, a Boston-based 8-piece all-female world music orchestra; Si Kahn, labor activist and folk music master; and Veronica Robles, singer and ambassador of Mexican music.
"We were looking for a broad mix of Lawrence cultures, past and present," Beauchesne said of the lineup. "We also want to reflect our interest in labor history and social justice."
The multi-stage celebration features music, dance, poetry and drama, as well as historical programs that focus on the struggles of immigrant mill workers. The ever-popular walking and trolley tours of the city's highlights will also be available.
For children, there will be pony rides, a petting zoo, puppets and face painting.
"We have certainly had our ups and downs; that's understandable for any nonprofit group," Beauchesne said.
"We are not putting on the really big show, with national headliners and such," said Beauchesne, pointing to earlier concerts that included Livingston Taylor and Crystal Gayle. "But we continue to emphasize the historical aspect and the labor history aspect, and that is the thing I am most proud of — we have raised the bar on that."
If you go
What: Bread and Roses Festival
When: Monday from noon to 7 p.m.
Where: Campagnone Common, 200 Common St., Lawrence
Admission: Free
Performance Schedule
Bernstein/Main Stage
Noon-1 p.m.: Branco/Stamas Big Band (Jazz)
1:30-2:15 p.m.: Veronica Robles (Mariachi Band)
2:35-3:20 p.m.: Si Kahn (Folk/social justice)
3:40-4:25 p.m.: Zili Misik (Afro-Carribean)
4:40-5:30 p.m.: Bread and Puppet (Political Theater — next to main stage)
5:30-6:30 p.m.: Puerto Plata (Dominican)
Camella Teoli Stage
12:30-1:15 p.m.: The Goodhues Band (Folk/bluegrass/country)
1:30-2:15 p.m.: Jeff Robinson Trio (Jazz, poetry, spoken word)
2:30-3:15 p.m.: Ten Tumbao (Afro/Latin/Carribean)
3:30-4:15 p.m.: Eastern Sound (Polish/polka)
Robert Frost Stage
Noon-12:15 p.m.: Taller Borinqueno (Puerto Rican dance)
12:20-12:40 p.m.: Boys and Girls Club of Lawrence (dance)
12:45-1:05 p.m.: Las Batuteras (baton twirlers)
1:10-1:40 p.m.: Grupo Cultural de Massachusetts
1:45-2:10 p.m.: Osibi (African dance)
2:15-2:55 p.m.: Henry Lappen (juggler)
3-3:30 p.m.: Aspara Dance Academy (Southeast Asian dance)
3:35-4:05 p.m.: O'Shea-Chaplin Dance (Irish dance)
Petting Zoo and Pony Rides
12:30-3 p.m.: Provided by Krochmal Farms of Tewksbury
Trolley Tours
Free, 50-minute tours depart from City Hall every hour and half hour starting at noon (last trolley is at 4:30 p.m.). Get tickets at the Friends of Lawrence Heritage State Park tent.
Walking Tours
Walking tours of the mill district, focusing on the Strike of 1912, led by local historian Jonas Stundza. Meet at the Corner of Jackson and Common Streets at the big blue sign for Campagnone Common.
Lawrence History Live!
A forum for the discussion of labor and history held under a tent on the Lawrence Common. Speakers will focus on past and present industrial, labor and immigrant issues, from 1 to 4 p.m. Historians, writers, and others will present their insights on Lawrence's industrial heritage, including the 1912 strike, and today's labor issues. Festival visitors will be able to participate in an encounter with history.
1-1:15 p.m.: Jonas Stundza, local historian, "The Epic of the Mega Mills"
1:15-1:45 p.m.: Dexter Arnold, labor historian, "The 1919 Strike: Looking back to 1912 and forward to the 1920s"
1:45-2:10 p.m.: Robert D'Attilio, member, Sacco and Vanzetti Commemoration Society, "The 1912 and 1919 Labor Problems as a Subtext to the Sacco and Vanzetti Case"
2:10-2:30 p.m.: Jared Tardugno, public historian, "Bread and Roses Nearly Forgotten: The 'God and Country' Effect"
2:30-3 p.m.: Louise Sandberg, archivist, Lawrence Public Library, "Immigrant Education Records." Andrew Reusch, educator and local historian, "Teaching at Lawrence High During a Time of Change"
3-3:10 p.m.: Michal Goldman, Filmmakers Cooperative, "A Workers' Cooperative Community Faced Economic Ruin and Organized"
3:10-3:40: SEIU 615, "Current-Day Organizing"
3:40-4:10: Natalia Ruiz Junco, American University, "Social Movements Today"
Booths at the festival include:
American Textile History Museum: Visit the American Textile History Museum of Lowell's craft booth for some textile fun and chat.
Barre, Vt., Historical Society: Workers from Barre, Vt., took in children of Lawrence strikers in 1912. Members of the Barre Historical Society bring to Lawrence some of their extraordinary labor history.
"Millies": Meet Lawrence filmmaker Lorre Fritchy and learn about her independent film, "Millies," which is in development.
Sacco and Vanzetti Commemoration Society: The Sacco and Vanzetti Commemoration Society exists to preserve the memory of Sacco and Vanzetti's struggle to radically change society.
