Department of Labor Press Release: Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis to induct pioneers of the farm worker movement into Labor Hall of Honor on March 26 in Washington
Labor Department auditorium to be named after César E. Chávez
See live stream of event at: http://www.dol.gov/dol/media/webcast/live/
10am EST/7am PST.
WASHINGTON: Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis will honor the contributions of farm workers by inducting the pioneers of the farm worker movement into the Labor Hall of Honor at U.S. Department of Labor headquarters in Washington at 10 a.m. EDT on March 26. Following the induction, Secretary Solis will dedicate the department’s auditorium in honor of César E. Chávez. Guests and participants will include Obama administration officials; members of Chávez’s family; farm workers and their families; leaders of community organizations, labor advocacy groups and unions; and local students. Michael Peña, actor and star of the upcoming film “Chávez,” will serve as the event’s master of ceremonies.
WHAT: Induction of pioneers of the farm worker movement into the Labor Hall of Honor
Dedication of the César E. Chávez Memorial Auditorium WHERE: U.S. Department of Labor 200 Constitution Ave. NW
Washington, D.C. 20210
(Visitors may enter at Third and C Streets NW.)
WHEN: Monday, March 26
10-11 a.m. EDT – induction
11-11:20 a.m. EDT – naming of auditorium
Live Stream of event at: http://www.dol.gov/dol/media/webcast/live/
10am EST/7am PST.
Introduction:
· On Monday, March 26, 2012 from 10:00 am – 12:00 pm, Secretary of Labor, Hilda L. Solis, will host the Induction of the Pioneers of the Farm Worker Movement into the Labor Hall of Honor and the naming of the César E. Chávez Memorial Auditorium. Michael Peña, American film and television actor, will emcee.
Purpose/Background:
· The Induction of the Pioneers of the Farm Worker Movement will publicly recognize and honor collective, broad-based action in the area of social and worker justice. This year the United Farm Workers of America (UFW) will celebrate its 50th Anniversary.
· These individuals and their families, and the collective action of thousands, initiated a long-standing tradition of social justice advocacy sparked by the fight in the fields at the inception of the United Farm Workers (UFW). The strength of their collective action led to such accomplishments as the abolishment of the short handled hoe that crippled generations of farm workers; unemployment, disability and workers’ compensation benefits for farm workers; establishment of labor contracts with employers that require rest periods, toilets in the fields, clean drinking water, hand washing facilities, protective clothing against pesticide exposure, banning pesticide spraying while workers are in the fields, outlawing DDT and other dangerous pesticides, eliminating farm labor contractors and guaranteeing farm workers seniority rights and job security; and the creation of a pension plan for retired farm workers, a credit union, and comprehensive union health benefits for farm workers and their families.
· The legacy of the collective, broad-based action reverberates throughout the labor movement with several union leaders crediting their organizing and strategy training to the farm worker movement. The powerful collective movement initiated by farmworkers continues today; as farmworkers and a wide range of vulnerable low-wage workers with limited legal protections organize to improve their jobs and their lives.
History about UFW Marters
Nan Freeman: was an 18-year old college freshman from Wakefield, Massachusetts who gave her life while picketing with striking farm workers in central Florida in the middle of the night because of her love for justice. In Cesar’s words, Nan was Kadosha in the Hebrew tradition, a “holy person” to be forever honored.
Attending DOL Event: Milton Freeman, Nan’s father; Elizabeth Freeman, Nan’s sister; Joseph Spear, Liz’ husband; and Sherry Spector, Nan’s cousin.
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Rufino Contreras was 27, a husband and father of two and a dedicated union activist who was shot to death in a struck Imperial Valley lettuce field for demanding a more just share of what he himself produced during the 1979 vegetable industry strike.
Attending DOL Event: Maxima Castellanos Hernandez, Rufino’s widow; Nancy Contreras-Castellanos, Rufino’s daughter; Ricardo Acosta Bonilla, Nancy’s husband; Ricardo Acosta Contreras, Rufino’s grandson and Natzy Acosta Contreras, Rufino’s granddaughter.
* * *
Nagi Daifallah was a young Muslim immigrant from South Yemen who was killed during the 1973 grape strike after he gave himself completely to the union to escape the trap of powerlessness.
Nagi immigrated to this country to escape poverty, only to rediscover it in California’s rich fields and vineyards. He learned English, could communicate well, served as a translator for UFW organizers and became active with the union.
Attending DOL Event: No one. Cesar and the UFW stayed in contact with Nagi Daifallah’s family in South Yemen for many years, but later lost touch.
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Juan De La Cruz was a 60-year old immigrant from Mexico, a gentle man who knew firsthand the benefits of a UFW contract. He was also a grape striker and an original union member recruited by Cesar in the early ‘60s. Juan died two days after Nagi’s killing when shots rang out on a vineyard picket line and Juan shielded his wife, Maximina, with his body.
Attending DOL Event: Jose Antonio De La Cruz, Juan’s son, to represent the De La Cruz family.
* * *
Rene Lopez was only 21, when he came home and proudly told his mother, “Here is my first union card. Now I am important. Now I am a man.”
A short time later, grower goons gunned Rene down just after he voted in a union election at Sikkema Dairy near Fresno, which he and his co-workers were striking. Rene was young, but, as Cesar observed, “he had already felt the call to social justice.”
Attending DOL Event: Rene’s mother, Dolores Robles Gonzalez, and Guadalupe Lopez, Rene’s sister.