Strike Pickets, 1910, Library of Congress.
In 1909, immigrant Jewish women chose to go on strike, forcing their superiors into a public debate over poor working conditions in the New York Shirtwaist Strike. Though failing to reform some factories, including the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory, followed by the dire consequence of the Triangle Factory fire, the women achieved many union-only factories with raised wages and increased membership in labor unions. They also inspired other strikes across the country, cementing their strike as a pivotal moment in the history of labor rights.