The Lucy Parsons Center opened in October 2023 as a community space for grassroots organizations in the Twin Cities area that work for justice in many different movements: labor unions, anti-racism, immigrant rights, women’s & reproductive rights, environmental justice, LGBTQ rights, and more. The building is maintained by volunteers working in these movements, and is available for community use. 

Who is Lucy Parsons? 

Lucy Parsons (1851-1942) was a labor activist and organizer active in Chicago from the 1870s until her death in 1942. She was of African American, Mexican, and Native American ancestry, and fought for racial justice and women’s rights in addition to organizing workers. Her husband, Albert Parsons, was one of the seven people sentenced to death in the wake of the Haymarket Affair, when, on May 1st 1886 in Chicago, police attacked a large demonstration of workers demanding an 8-hour working day. This event was memorialized by making May 1st International Workers Day, also known as May Day.

Despite her grief, Lucy dedicated the next five decades of her life to the struggle. As a labor organizer, she was involved in the Industrial Workers of the World and the Knights of Labor, and helped found the Chicago Working Women’s Union. Following the 1917 Russian Revolution, Parsons moved towards the cause of communism. She worked with the Communist Party USA and worked in International Labor Defense, especially in defense of the Scottsboro Boys.