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 * __Mother Mary Harris Jones__**

In 1867, her four children and George died from yellow fever within one week. She moved back to Chicago to work as a dressmaker. In 1871, the Chicago fire caused her to lose everything. She often thought about the poor and what little they had. This caused her to embark on the path of social justice. She became a volunteer with the Knights of Labor. She traveled around the nation to industrial areas and lived with the workers in their tents. The workers came to know her as "Mother." Mary would travel to wherever there was a strike to organize and help the poor workers. She would educate the workers on upcoming conflicts because she believed education was key. Many times Mary got arrested for her public speeches and protests, but she always came back. She took on the appearance of a grandmother and was loved by the working men and their families. She changed her birthdate to May 1, 1830. She changed the day to represent International Labor Day. She changed the year to make her seem older. She died on November 30, 1930.
 * Background:** Mary was born in Cork, Ireland. British soldiers that invaded Ireland would torture the Irish. They would cut off their heads and place them on their bayonets as they marched around the land. In 1841, Mary and her family fled to Toronoto, Ontario. Mary attended public school until she was 17 in Toronoto before moving to Michigan to become a teacher. Not long after moving to Michigan, she moved to Chicago and became a dressmaker. After a while, she moved to Tennessee. It was there that she met her husband, George E. Jones, in 1861. George was a prominent member of the Iron Molder's Union. Through George, Mary learned about unions and the psychology of working men.


 * Problem:** When Mary worked for the wealthy, she would often look outside their windows and see the poor and homeless struggling on the streets. She wanted to help these people with social issues in the harsh economic time. She wanted the poor workers to be able to have better working conditions and she believed they should be more educated so they could fight the wealthy coal operators and capitalists for their rights and freedoms.


 * Solution:** Mary went around to many different industrial strikes. She educated the working men on upcoming events so they could fight intelligently. She would stay with the men through their strikes, and she wound up in jail with them many times. Mary helped the men and their families win their strikes so they could have better living conditions. She built courage with her inspiring public speeches and with her adoption of the workers.

""Mother" Mary Harris Jones biography." //Lakewood Public Library (Lakewood, Ohio)//. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Jan. 2012. .

"Mary Harris "Mother" Jones: Biography from Answers.com."//Answers.com: Wiki Q&A combined with free online dictionary, thesaurus, and encyclopedias//. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Jan. 2012. .

"The Autobiography of Mother Jones - Ch. 1 - 13." //Angelfire: Welcome to Angelfire//. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Jan. 2012. .