who helped form the american federation of labor?
Samuel Gompers
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 " No single event has influenced the history of labor in Illinois , the United States , and even the world , more than the Chicago Haymarket Affair . It began with a rally on May 4 , 1886 , but the consequences are still being felt today . Although the rally is included in American history textbooks , very few present the event accurately or point out its significance , " according to labor studies professor William J. Adelman . 

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 After stepping down as Brotherhood Grand Secretary in 1893 , Debs organized one of the first industrial unions in the United States , the American Railway Union ( ARU ) , for unskilled workers . The Union successfully struck the Great Northern Railway in April 1894 , winning most of its demands . 

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 On the first anniversary of the event , May 4 , 1887 , the New @-@ York Tribune published an interview with Senator Leland Stanford , in which he addressed the consensus that " the conflict between capital and labor is intensifying " and articulated the vision advocated by the Knights of Labor for an industrial system of worker @-@ owned co @-@ operatives , another among the strategies pursued to advance the conditions of laborers . The interview was republished as a pamphlet to include the bill Stanford introduced in the Senate to foster co @-@ operatives . 

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 On September 5 , 1917 , federal officers raided the national headquarters , in Chicago , of the Industrial Workers of the World ( IWW , sometimes " Wobblies " ) , as well as 48 of the union 's halls across the nation . The union had opposed the war and urged members and others to refuse conscription into the armed forces . On September 28 , 166 IWW leaders , including union head Big Bill Haywood were indicted in the Northern District of Illinois ; their cases were assigned to Landis . Some 40 of the indicted men could not be found ; a few others had charges dismissed against them . Ultimately , Landis presided over a trial against 113 defendants , the largest federal criminal trial to that point . 

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 Widespread strikes marked 1922 , as labor sought redress for falling wages and increased unemployment . In April , 500 @,@ 000 coal miners , led by John L. Lewis , struck over wage cuts . Mining executives argued that the industry was seeing hard times ; Lewis accused them of trying to break the union . As the strike became protracted , Harding offered compromise to settle it . As Harding proposed , the miners agreed to return to work , and Congress created a commission to look into their grievances . 
