Today in Labor History February 4, 1979: Six workers were killed by police in the massacre of Cromotex, Lima Peru. The workers had taken over the factory after it went bankrupt and its owners tried to close it down. Led by a hardline revolutionary, Hemigidio Huertas, workers armed with sticks took the premises over. They held out for a week, killing a police captain in the process. When police later stormed the factory, they killed six workers including Huertas. One of the survivors, Nestor Cerpa, was arrested and jailed for 10 months. After his release, he went underground and started to organize the MRTA, or Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement.

#workingclass #LaborHistory #Peru, #tupacamaru #MRTA #massacre #policebrutality #tupac #union #strike #police #Revolutionary

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@MikeDunnAuthor
The photos, presumably included to illustrate the story, shows people armed with more than sticks?

@tobychev

You need to read the whole thing, including the alt text with the photo. The worker revolt was poorly armed and involved sticks. One of the survivors went on to form the Tupac Amaru guerrillas, who are heavily armed. That's what the photo shows.

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