California Migrant Ministry

Reverend James Drake Papers

drice — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 10:57:57 -0400

An ordained minister, Jim Drake worked for the California Migrant Ministry for over a decade. Concurrently, he learned about labor organizing from Cesar Chavez and worked for the UFW as Chavez's administrative assistant and coordinator of the national boycotts of table grapes. He would go on to found and organize various local union and faith-based organizations, mainly concerned with housing. His papers cover his tenure with the UFW.

UFW Publications

kschmeling — Wed, 22 Jan 2014 14:29:30 -0500

UFW Publications is primarily comprised of serials and unique publications created by, or collected by the United Farm Workers of America, the National Farm Worker Ministry and support organizations, which assisted the UFW with its cause. Included in the collection are convention proceedings dating back to the official inception of the UFW, constitutions, bylaws and serials.

UFW Publications is an artificial collection, its contents have been pulled from other UFW collections and UFW related collections to create a single grouping of farm labor publications.

UFW Virginia Boycott Records

kschmeling — Mon, 02 Dec 2013 14:02:50 -0500

The Virginia Boycott office was set up by the United Farm Workers to handle the organization of boycotted products and/or establishments in the State of Virginia and its surrounding region. The office dealt mainly with the boycotting of stores, which sold non-union products or were involved in anti-union activities. As well, the office involved itself with other UFW interests including migrant workers, illegal aliens, pesticide control, and the lobbying for or against specific legislation being proposed at the state and federal levels.

Philip Vera Cruz Papers

drice — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 14:07:32 -0400

Philip Vera Cruz (Dec 25, 1904 – June 12, 1994) was born in Saoag, Ilocos Sur,
Philippines. He worked on farms in the Philippines before traveling to the United States
in 1926. Vera Cruz worked several odd jobs around the Midwest, but was not active in
any union before moving to California in 1943 and becoming a farm worker. He joined
the Agricultural Worker Organizing Committee (AWOC) and soon became a leader in
farm workers rights. In 1965 he was an active force in the AWOC decision to strike
against grape growers in Delano, CA. The strike and boycott soon won the support of
Cesar Chavez and the National Farm Workers of America, and led to the eventual
merging of the two groups to form the United Farm Workers. Vera Cruz was elected a
vice president of the union, a position he held until he left the union in protest of Chavez
in 1977, though he continued to be active in his retirement. Cruz also formed the Farm
Workers Credit Union and created Agbayani Village, a retirement community for older
farm workers. Throughout his career Vera Cruz worked for migrant and farm worker
rights, and was very active in the Asian American, especially Filipino, rights movement
and community. In 1987 he received the Ninoy M Aquino Award in the Philippines, and
in 1992 he was honored by the AFL-CIO’s Asian Pacific American Labor Committee.

The papers of Philip Vera Cruz focus on his active years as a California labor leader. It
includes his correspondence, writings and notes, as well as his activity in the UFW and
other organizations and his work in boycotts. Cruz’s research, negotiations, and
collective bargaining work are also included as well as a number of ALRB cases and
resources he collected for farm workers and Filipinos.