Viva La Causa 

Viva La Causa focuses on one of the seminal events in the march for human rights—the grape strike and boycott led by César Chávez and Dolores Huerta in the 1960s. Viva la Causa shows how thousands of people from across the nation joined in a struggle for justice for the most exploited people in our country—the workers who put food on our tables. 

For information on the Center for Farmworker Families 

http://www.farmworkerfamily.org/

CÉSAR CHÁVEZ USED THE PHILOSOPHY OF NONVIOLENCE WHICH INCLUDED STRIKES, MARCHES AND BOYCOTTS TO EFFECT CHANGES IN THE 1960's FARMWORKERS MOVEMENT


Background

The history of nonviolence began with Mahatma Gandhi, who was seen as the "father of nonviolence".  Gandhi introduced the general concept of nonviolent action and organized a successful nonviolent struggle against the British colonial rule in India.  Starting in 1928, Gandhi organized marches, boycotts, "Quit India" protests against the British government in which more than 100,000 were jailed.  While imprisoned multiple times, Gandhi protested using multiple fasts. Finally, in 1947, India gained its independence from British rule after centuries of oppression.

In the 1950's, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. utilized Gandhi's model of nonviolence to counteract racial injustice in the United States. Dr. King studied Gandhi's techniques of nonviolence and successfully used them in 1955 during the Montgomery Bus Boycott. The Civil Rights Movement continued with nonviolent protests in 1960 Lunch Counter Sit-ins, Freedoms Riders, March from Selma to Montgomery and these protests led to the final passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act in 1965.


César Chávez and the farmworkers movement in California

In 1962 Cesar Chavez moved to Delano California with his wife and eight children to help change the working conditions of the farm workers.  He was already an experienced community organizer with Community Service Organization (CSO).  The farmworkers in Delano were working without contracts, no overtime pay, no holiday or vacation, no health or pension plans. They had to provide their own equipment, safety provisions were minimal, often there were no regular rest periods, and toilet and sanitary drinking water were not provided.  The workers were looking for representation and collective bargaining rights.  César Chávez, along with other leaders of the farmworker movement, including Dolores Huerta, led efforts to change these conditions based on the teachings and experiences of Gandhi and Dr. King.

1965: Delano, California: The National Farm Worker Association joined the Filipino Union in the Delano strike against the ten table grape growers of California.  In retaliation, growers and their allies in law enforcement harassed and arrested strikers. Strikebreakers were brought in to harvest the grapes.

1966: César Chávez led a 250-mile protest march from Delano to Sacramento to raise awareness of the farmworkers struggle. This resulted in one grower signing an agreement with the union.

1967: The national boycott of California table grapes caused the dramatic decline in sales of California grapes in US and Canada in the following years.

1968: As frustration and anger from the farmworker erupted, Chávez started a 25-day fast to re-dedicate his movement to nonviolence.  Senator Robert Kennedy and thousands of farmworkers joined Chávez in breaking the fast by participating in a public mass.

1969: After workers developed symptoms of pesticide poisoning, Chávez and union leaders protested the Food and Drug Administration to warn the of dangers of pesticides.

1970: The grape strike and boycott finally ended with a three-year contract between the Delano growers and the United Farm Workers.

1975: California passed the Agricultural Labor relations Act (ALRA), the first law in the nation recognizing the right of farmworkers to unionize.


On March 30,2016, President Barack Obama, through Presidential Proclamation, declared March 31 "as César Chávez Day.  I call upon all Americans to observe this day with appropriate service, community, and education programs to honor César Chávez's enduring legacy."


"Once social change begins, it cannot be reversed. You cannot un-educate the person who has learned to read. You cannot humiliate the person who feels pride. You cannot oppress the people who are not afraid anymore. We have seen the future, and the future is ours." — César Chávez

COMMUNITY CONVERSATION AFTER VIEWING THE FILM