Today in Labor History February 20, 1917: Thousands of women marched to City Hall in New York to demand relief from high wartime food prices. Inflation had wiped out wage gains made by workers prior to the war, leading to a high level of working-class protest. The protest, which began on February 19, and which continued until February 24, were led by Ida Harris, president of the socialist Mothers Vigilance Committee, and Marie Ganz, an anarchist labor organizer. On February 22, the women attacked the city's poultry markets, assaulting customers and destroying chickens. And on February 24, thousands marched on Madison Square. By early March, the city began producing thousands of pounds of low-cost produce and wholesalers lowered prices.

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