Throughout the twentieth century, Filipino and Mexican migrants were major players in farm labor in California. In Coachella and Delano, they performed backbreaking labor ensuring bountiful harvests of crops like grapes and asparagus. The farmworkers often worked long hours for low pay, few benefits, and in unsafe conditions.

Uniting the two groups and the unions that represented the workers before the Delano Grape Strike, one of the most important labor strikes in US history, was no easy feat. This lapel pin is part of a powerful story about Filipino American labor activism and solidarity.

The Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee (AWOC), and the National Farm Workers Association (NFWA), joined forces in 1965 for the Delano Grape Strike, as well as a nationwide boycott campaign, which continued for five years. The United Farm Workers Organizing Committee was formed in 1966 through this union merger.

Today, the United Farm Workers (UFW) is well-known for its organized labor activism, and its power was made possible by the ’60s grape boycott, and the crucial leadership of Filipinos from the AWOC.

In this module, we will learn the history behind this seemingly simple lapel pin, which was used by union members and supporters during the Delano Grape Strike, a nonviolent direct action campaign.