Before the start of Spring Break, on March 30, Cesar Chavez day was celebrated at LBCC for the second year on campus.
The Social Justice department celebrated Chavez by putting together a presentation, partnered with the Labor Council For Latin American Advancement (LCLAA), an organization that helps unionize Latinx working families.
In its efforts to combat work discrimination and equal pay for labor workers and students that come from working families. The repercussions that extensive labor does to the mind and body, and how we can help communities move into a different lifestyle.
The event was able to share to its members and non members about immigration reform, how to protect voting rights and other issues that affect labor workers such as agricultural farm workers.
In addition, they provided food such as bagels and coffee for those who attended.
Cesar Chavez, a famous labor activist, was a farm worker before he died at the age of 66. His story shares the exploitation of labor workers by farm owners and the laws.
Injustice pushed Chavez to educate himself and other workers to organize for demand of better working conditions and higher wages for agricultural labor workers.
Labor strikes were active during the time of 1917. During its season, labor workers were not counted as regular people because of their socioeconomic status and immigration status, leading workers to leave their positions and find a way to avoid being exploited by the farm owners.
Women in the fields whose voices were ignored and had less rights than their male counterparts and had to find or form their own groups.
Many workers had little to no education. The division of labor and illiteracy made a huge gap in field work. Laws and unions in place have opened up doors for people who did not have a chance to a normal life that most people have today like a home, a bed and a family.
Members of the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement stand for a photo before the Cesar Chavez event held in the Social Justice Intercultural Center at LAC lower level of Building E on March 30 2023. (Emily D’Amico)
The grape strikes in Delano caught the attention of the people. The start and the end of the harvest season of the fruits many love hold such power to the life of the farm workers and the families that exist.
Language barriers, laws, money and class have drawn lines that separates people.
“His family followed the fields, the harvest in different areas.” Rudy Montalvo, a speaker at the event, is a member of the LCLAA and a former labor worker who explained. He pushed for equity in the workplace with other Latinx activists, such as Dolores Huerta who is still active today.
Organization speaker Xochitl Cobarruvias explained her role as a server in the union. She helps oversee working families and individuals, with laws and the demographics being different and many issues as well as solutions exist.
As time has progressed labor laws have been implemented and modified to fit communities outside of the Chicano-Latino community.
Filipinx activists who existed and striked with the Chavez campaign and other labor union groups from the start helped pave the way for other racial minorities to join the labor movement we see or hear about today.
With California being largely democratic, it has not been too difficult to adapt the changes to better the lives of the working class people. However organizations and individuals continue to shine the light on the still existing lower-working-class population that we often don’t pay much attention to.
The organization LCLAA plans to expand their members to be able to help more immigrant communities thrive. “We have gathered over 300 signatures”, said union member Rudy Montalvo.
In their collaboration with LBCC and their future plans to include more students of color, faculty and organizations, will pave a way to more opportunities for students from working communities.