Destination Delano 2014
DESTINATION DELANO 2014 is a convergence of the Filipino Community and its supporters from throughout California and beyond to commemorate the historic 1965 Coachella and Delano Grape Strikes led by the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee (AWOC), AFL-CIO, under the leadership of Larry Dulay Itliong. Since the early 1900’s, the Filipino labor movement in this country had been organizing to bring agricultural workers under the protection of a union. Itliong, an experienced and dedicated union organizer, had long made it clear, “I feel we (Filipinos) have the same rights as any of them because in that Constitution, it is said that everybody has equal rights and justice. You’ve got to make that come about. They are not going to give it to you.” Understanding Itliong’s words, Filipinos knew that going on strike was the only way to improve working conditions for agricultural workers. On the evening of September 7, 1965, this decades-long struggle to unionize culminated at the Delano Filipino Community Hall. When Itliong called for the strike vote, AWOC’S membership voted unanimously; it would be this strike that would set into motion this country’s most decisive battle between agricultural workers and a powerful agribusiness.
DESTINATION DELANO 2014 is a 2-day event: On Saturday, September 20, 2014, the Filipino Community will converge on Ilokano Farms located at 41760 Road 130, Orosi, CA for a full-day symposium to recollect the economic and political conditions Filipinos and other agricultural workers faced that would led up to the 1965 strikes. The following day, on Sunday, September 21, 2014, the Filipino Community will converge in Delano for an historical tour to revisit the key places and sites of the 1965 strike and its leaders. 2015 marks the 50th Anniversary of the historical 1965 Grape Strikes. Yet, its true origins and history remain obscured and in many cases, revised. DESTINATION DELANO 2014 is calling for the historical record to be set straight by recounting the decades-long struggle that Filipinos waged to bring about collective bargaining rights within the agricultural sector in this country.
The 1965 Grape Strikes were defining moments in U.S. labor history: And for Filipinos today, these strikes remain our greatest contribution and achievement in this country.
Please see the attached flyers for more details and contact information about the event!
