105: Cesar Chavez, Dolores Huerta & The Struggle Of America's Farm Workers: The Dark History of the Chicano Movement
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I love so I can make sure my wardrobe stays fresh and I don't blow my budget. They've got cashmere sweaters from $50, pants for every occasion, washable silk tops. And my favorite part, all Quince items are priced 50 to 80% less than similar brands. By partnering directly with top factories, Quince cuts out the cost of the middleman

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RIP. Make switching seasons a breeze with Quince's high quality closet essentials. Go to quince.com slash dark history for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. That's quince, Q-U-I-N-C-E dot com slash dark history to get free shipping and 365 day returns. quince.com slash dark history.

This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Most of you listening right now are probably multitasking. Yep, while you're listening to me talk, you're probably also driving, cleaning, exercising, or maybe even grocery shopping. But if you're not in some kind of moving vehicle, there's something else you could be doing right now. Getting an auto quote from Progressive Insurance.

It's easy and you can save money by doing it from your phone. Drivers who save by switching to Progressive save nearly $750 on average. And auto customers qualify for an average of seven discounts. Discounts for having multiple vehicles on your policy, being a homeowner and more.

So just like your favorite podcast, Progressive will be with you 24-7, 365 days a year, so you're protected no matter what. Multitask right now. Quote your car insurance at Progressive.com to join the over 28 million drivers who trust Progressive.

In the 70s, just saying the word boycott could land you in prison for six months.

Yes, no lie. For decades, the workers who picked the produce Americans lived on didn't have basic human rights. I'm talking about the right to take, I don't know, a break? Maybe to have some water? Or even use the frickin' bathroom, huh?

Anytime these workers spoke up and maybe just demanded some rights, they would be punished or replaced. It wasn't until two great civil rights leaders unified the workers that they realized just how much power they had. This led to one of the greatest fights for civil rights in U.S. history. Today, we are talking about the Chicano Movement. ♪

Hi, friends. I hope you're having a wonderful day today. My name is Bailey Sarian, and I'd like to welcome you to my podcast, Dark History. Here, you know, we believe that, like, history doesn't have to be boring. I mean, yes, it might be tragic. Usually it is. I mean, sometimes it's even happy. But either way, it's our dark history, baby. So, look, all you have to do, sit back, relax, and let me tell you...

some hot juicy history gossip, okay? You know when you're out driving, brah, you know when you start seeing like all these streets that are named after tons of different people. There's one like Martin Luther King, JFK, Lincoln. There's a million Washington things because everyone loves that guy, right? So many Washingtons. For me growing up in Southern California, I would see like this name over and over and over again.

And I never really knew who it was because I didn't learn about it. And that name was Cesar Chavez. Now, all the other names I had recognized, right? But not so much this one growing up. So I was like, let's get into it, right? So Cesar was a Mexican-American labor and civil rights activist. And he helped build one of the greatest political movements the United States has ever seen. No lie.

It's something called the Chicano Movement. And working right next to him was another icon in American history. Her name is Dolores Huerta. And Dolores and Cesar are considered American heroes, as they should be. Oh my God. And honestly, I don't remember being taught really any Mexican American history lessons.

for that matter. It just feels like a huge blind spot because so much happened during this time. This movement crosses past with so many dark moments in American history. Talking about like the Great Depression, World War II, the Zoot Suit Riots, and the Vietnam War. It went through, it went through it all.

So in order to understand the Chicano movement, we need to understand what the term Chicano means because it has so many different meanings. It's got a pretty complicated history, but essentially the term comes from Mexico, specifically the indigenous cultures from countries like Costa Rica, Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador.

as well as some other countries. So Chicano is a term used to refer to people with indigenous roots. And the term was actually slang and even an insult. Even though native cultures were here in America first, they were seen as less American in the 20th century, around the 1920s and the 30s. Chicanos, they started to take the term back and make it like a symbol of pride.

pride. But once the Great Depression hit in California in like early 1930s, things were about to get just real bad for them. This is because the United States ordered the deportation of 2 million people of Mexican descent. They claimed the country couldn't take the economic demand during the Depression. In other words, they wanted the limited resources they had like food, water, and farm jobs to go to

the white Americans. Here's the even more insane part. The over 1.2 million people who were deported back to Mexico were US citizens. Yeah, we're making bank sense, right? So imagine you're just walking around like minding your own business, then somebody freaking snatches you up and deports you to a country that you've never even lived in. Boo!

Deporting US citizens was illegal, but to the local governments and officials in charge, you know how it goes. They don't give a shit. It didn't matter. They were like, "No one's gonna call us on this." They knew they were in charge. Keep in mind during this time, America was experiencing a huge boom in immigration from Europe.

And most of those immigrants were able to stay in the United States during the depression. But if you existed in lower income communities of color, it doesn't matter where you were born. If you were in the wrong place during this time, your ass is grass, man.

So the government deported 2 million Mexicans in America. And it wasn't until after the Great Depression that people of Mexican descent were allowed to come back into America to work. Yeah, talk about a toxic relationship. You have to leave. But when I want you or need you, you have to come back. Okay, but then you're going to leave again because I don't want you here. Don't leave your tooth brush. But I'm going to need you to come back. Okay? Okay.

That's pretty much that relationship. But when they did get here, it was like the job options for them were slim to none. Pretty much the only jobs they could get were doing manual labor. And they would be working on farms, looking after cattle, working in mines, or even chopping down trees. These jobs left many of them living way below the national poverty level. And so many people began to equate being poor with being Chicano.

I don't know. And then all the stereotypes that came along with that. And at that time, I mean, it just felt hopeless. Like there was no way they could get ahead in life. It wasn't until one man decided to use his voice or the voiceless that some real change started to happen for the community.

This is when we meet Cesar Chavez. You know that one good tank top that you wear like all year round? I mean, it fits you just right. So you wear it all the time, but maybe now it's getting a little old. Shifting my wardrobe from summer to fall is always a challenge. Luckily, Quince offers timeless and high quality items that I love.

love so I can make sure my wardrobe stays fresh and I don't blow my budget. They've got cashmere sweaters from $50, pants for every occasion, washable silk tops, and my favorite part, all Quince items are priced $50 to

80% less than similar brands. By partnering directly with top factories, Quince cuts out the cost of the middleman and passes the savings on to us. And Quince only works with factories that use safe, ethical, and responsible manufacturing practices and premium fabrics and finishes. I recently got this 100% European linen short sleeve shirt. Ooh!

I love linen and you know, it was so comfortable, so cute. I can finally retire my old ratty tank top.

R.I.P. Make switching seasons a breeze with Quince's high quality closet essentials. Go to quince.com slash dark history for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. That's quince, Q-U-I-N-C-E dot com slash dark history to get free shipping and 365 day returns. quince.com slash dark history.

This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Most of you listening right now are probably multitasking. Yep, while you're listening to me talk, you're probably also driving, cleaning, exercising, or maybe even grocery shopping. But if you're not in some kind of moving vehicle, there's something else you could be doing right now. Getting an auto quote from Progressive Insurance.

It's easy and you can save money by doing it from your phone. Drivers who save by switching to Progressive save nearly $750 on average. And auto customers qualify for an average of seven discounts. Discounts for having multiple vehicles on your policy, being a homeowner and more.

So just like your favorite podcast, Progressive will be with you 24-7, 365 days a year, so you're protected no matter what. Multitask right now. Quote your car insurance at Progressive.com to join the over 28 million drivers who trust Progressive.

It's great. As many of us are birthed, it usually starts with our parents. So we're going to start with Cesar's dad.

Weird way to get there, Bailey, but I got there. His name was Labrado Chavez, and he was a son of Mexican immigrants. He and his wife, Juana, settled in Yuma, Arizona in the early 1900s with their six kids. Labrado was known as a really hardworking and successful person. He ran a general store.

He cared for his family's farm in Yuma, and he was even a postmaster. I don't know, damn, Daddy, he was doing a lot. Most people only had just one of these, like, three jobs he had. So you could say Liberato was doing well for himself. Everything he did was for the sake of his family, and he wanted to change their future. Because his family, like so many other immigrant families in the area, they had lived in poverty and didn't want that for his own children.

Since the Chavez family had roots in Mexico, they were known as Chicanos, which meant right from the start, they were treated a little differently, differently in society. I mean, in America at this time, if you didn't fit into that mold of a European Christian American, then you were treated not so great. People are just rude, rude little assholes. Very unchristian-like is what I would say, but what do I know?

So one day, Labrado struck up a deal with his white, wealthy neighbor. So if Labrado and his family cleared 80 acres of the farmland that they had lived on, the neighbor would sign over a big part of his land to the Chavez family, which is like a great deal, right? You're like, oh my God, fuck yeah.

I'm in. I mean, on top of that, he was even gonna throw in like the home that was built on the land. He was like, "Yeah, and you can keep the home too." Whoa, the crowd goes wild. He's like, "Okay, great." So the Chavez family hustled and they got the 80 acres of land on his property looking gorgeous, nice, cleaned up, all done, right? But after they did all the work, the neighbor, you think he followed through?

I doubt it. Of course he did it, right? He screwed them over. The owner, he sold the land that he was going to give to the family. He sold it to someone else and got the land cleaned up for free. Oh, what a dick, right? Jeez Louise. So the Chavez family had done like all that hard work

for somebody else's gain, nothing for them. What a dick move. So the Chavez family reached out to a lawyer and they were asking for advice, like, you know, what can we do? Can we do anything? And the lawyer tells them to like take out a loan so they'd be able to buy the land back.

So they decided to take his advice. So they got a loan. They ended up buying the land and they were living there and everything was great. But the problem was the family wasn't able to pay the high interest on the loan. And I get, you know, the lawyer knew that. As soon as the family was behind on their bills, the lawyer came in and took everything the Chavez family had. Everything. Everything.

Their home, their money, their land. It was all taken. It's like, damn, give me a break, right? The Chavez family had to move in with Labrado's mother and just start over. And obviously this really affected the whole family, especially Labrado's oldest son, Caesar, right? Caesar was just like a child when all this was happening. But the injustice he and his family were experiencing is something he could never forget.

Despite how little they had, the Chavez family always had the mindset of helping others, which is like so kind because it got screwed over so hard. And, you know, most of us would just turn to awful witches. And they didn't. No matter who you were, you knew you could get a meal at the Chavez household. Their doors were open.

His mother and grandmother taught him that there was nothing more important than helping others. And his family never turned anyone away. Something else that shaped young Caesar's life was the way he was treated at school. I mean, his very first day. His very first day of school. He's only like seven years old.

And the other kids, they would bully him because he had an accent. They also called him what they called other Chicanos in school, which was like dirty Mexican. And you'd think like the teachers might jump in and tell the kids to stop, but they never did. They would actually like egg them on.

Yeah. And at the time, teachers were totally allowed to physically punish students. Caesar would say, quote,

I mean, sometimes the teacher would even like do this in front of other kids. So, you know, the other kids are like, well, if she's doing it, I'm gonna do it too. This is why I won't have kids because they're pieces of shit. I'm sorry. I said it. Someone had to say it. Your kid is probably a piece of shit. Sorry about that. Anyways, but this was in the 30s. So maybe they're not anymore. Children have brown. Sorry. I can't say that. So this was the 1930s. And at the time, like many of the schools, they were still segregated.

But the ones that weren't segregated, honestly, they weren't any better for the kids at all. You know, it's not like a safe space. I mean, even in integrated schools, kids weren't allowed to speak Spanish. And those who did would end up being hit, be forced to run laps around the school or have to write, I will not speak Spanish on like the board. Yeah, they'd have to do that hundreds of times. For what? I don't know.

Right? One time a teacher caught Caesar speaking Spanish once again in class and they forced him to wear a sign at school all day that said, "I am a clown. I speak Spanish."

So dumb. I hate this planet. So not only were the kids, you know, treating him like garbage, right? Being assholes to him because he's wearing a sign. But the teachers were making it a point to humiliate him, right?

One of the reasons the schools just truly did not give a shit about these kids is because they knew that they'd most likely be gone in a matter of weeks. This is because their parents were migrant farm workers who were constantly moving to different towns, you know, for work opportunity. Wherever the work was, that's where people were going.

A migrant worker is a person who moves from place to place looking for work, typically farm work. So because of that, children of migrant workers were always changing schools. And unfortunately, the teachers, they knew this. So they just they didn't like try and bother actually trying

trying to teach the kids or help them out because in their mind, like what was the point? They were just going to leave by, you know? So for migrant workers like Cesar's parents, it was a struggle to earn the bare minimum to live. I mean, anytime a job popped up nearby the Chavez family, they had to move. Workers would follow something called the harvest trail. It's a trail along a stretch of farmland in California

that hired migrant workers to come in and they also gave them housing. This is so they'd be able to work longer hours and like go to bed and then, you know, wake back up and look, you're right at work. Wow. And the housing they had, it wasn't like some nice, it wasn't cute. Okay, it wasn't something you're imagining that's cute and cozy. Like wow, carpet. No, the conditions were awful. Okay. The families would stay in bare cabins near the farmland and not like a cute bear.

Bare meaning empty. There was nothing to do, nothing to look at. Just empty. Thanks. Cool. These places didn't have indoor plumbing or electricity, but there was a roof, right? It's a roof over their head. Woo! Most migrant families would be placed in tents that would be damp and cold from, you know, the outdoor elements. And the shitty housing that there was

wasn't even free. The labor contractors who hired the workers would charge rent for these tents and cabins and it'd be taken directly from their pay. So it's like they could just jack up the prices of rent if they wanted to and

They couldn't say anything. So lame. You really felt like you just couldn't win. And on top of that, the tools the workers would need for these labor jobs, they weren't even supplied to them. Workers, they would have to go out, use their paycheck again to purchase all of the tools they would need from the same people who are paying them. So it's just a circle jerk. Yeah. So in conclusion, um,

They would go home with barely anything, barely screaming by. But it felt like everyone was desperate for work at this time, so there was like no choice but to take these shit jobs. There were no other places that would hire migrant workers. Society sadly viewed them as poor, dirty labor workers, not like just a normal fucking person like everyone else.

So this was the life the Chavez family lived and over the course of a decade, Caesar transferred schools 37 times. Damn. I know that's a lot. That's a lot. Oh my God. He looks so scary, Paul. He has black eyes. Have you been possessed by a demon? I forgot about you guys. You guys have been so quiet.

Anyways, at almost every school he attended, he was punished for speaking Spanish and honestly just being different. In 1942, after Cesar graduated the eighth grade, he ended up dropping out. So that means he went to 37 different schools before eighth grade. Can you imagine being the new kid 37 times? Being the new kid is awful.

Poor guy. Oh my God. So he drops out at the eighth grade. And this is because his father actually got seriously injured in a car accident. So Caesar knew if he didn't step up to help the family, then his mother would have to go out and work in the fields and do all that. So Caesar took over his dad's shifts in the fields when he was just 14 years old. And he became like the man of the household.

Well, just because he left school didn't mean that he left all that bullying behind, right? When Caesar was a teenager, he walked into a diner and tried to order a hamburger. And the waitress, I guess she laughed at him and told him like, oh, we don't sell the Mexicans. No hamburger for you.

And I was like, bro, really? We're adults. Does anyone ever grow up? Oh, no? All right. Well, fuck me then. Anyways, there was another time he was arrested for sitting in the whites only part of a movie theater. Now, even though he bought a ticket, just like everyone else in there, he still got in trouble. So, I mean, think about it. When society rejects everything about you, right? You're never doing anything right. It's like, fuck society.

Fuck the mainstream, fuck everything. And for Chicanos and other communities of color, I mean, this is exactly where the- You know that one good tank top that you wear like all year round? I mean, it fits you just right. So you wear it all the time, but maybe now it's getting a little old.

Shifting my wardrobe from summer to fall is always a challenge. Luckily, Quince offers timeless and high quality items that I love so I can make sure my wardrobe stays fresh and I don't blow my budget. They've got cashmere sweaters from $50, pants for every occasion, washable silk tops, and my favorite part,

All Quince items are priced 50 to 80% less than similar brands. By partnering directly with top factories, Quince cuts out the cost of the middleman and passes the savings on to us. And Quince only works with factories that use safe, ethical, and responsible manufacturing practices

and premium fabrics and finishes. I recently got this 100% European linen short sleeve shirt. Ooh, I love linen and you know, it was so comfortable, so cute. I can finally retire my old ratty tank top.

R.I.P. Make switching seasons a breeze with Quince's high quality closet essentials. Go to quince.com slash dark history for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. That's quince, Q-U-I-N-C-E dot com slash dark history to get free shipping and 365 day returns. quince.com slash dark history.

This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Most of you listening right now are probably multitasking. Yep, while you're listening to me talk, you're probably also driving, cleaning, exercising, or maybe even grocery shopping. But if you're not in some kind of moving vehicle, there's something else you could be doing right now. Getting an auto quote from Progressive Insurance.

It's easy and you can save money by doing it from your phone. Drivers who save by switching to Progressive save nearly $750 on average. And auto customers qualify for an average of seven discounts. Discounts for having multiple vehicles on your policy, being a homeowner and more.

So just like your favorite podcast, Progressive will be with you 24, 7, 365 days a year. So you're protected no matter what. Multitask right now. Quote your car insurance at Progressive.com to join the over 28 million drivers who trust Progressive.

Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. National average 12-month savings of $744 by new customer surveyed who saved with Progressive between June 2022 and May 2023. Potential savings will vary. Discounts not available in all states and situations. Let's get back to the story. All of this rejection and straight-up racism just led to a big counterculture movement.

a movement which essentially celebrated people taking pride in being different, okay? Black, Filipino, and Mexican-American teenagers rebelled against mainstream fashion trends by wearing something called Zoot Suits. We did an episode on Zoot Suit riots in season one, and it's kind of like the ghost episode. It disappeared, but you can still listen to it on the audio side if you want. But if you don't know,

i'll give you a little recap zoot suits they were like these super stylish and like oversized suits and they became super popular in harlem dance halls because i guess they were easy to move in but also you just looked sick okay they were worn mostly by men but some women they were owning that too and it looked like yes work

Okay, the suit had like these, it was high waisted, wide leg trouser, right? And on top was this big long coat with like big lapels. Everything was like oversized, but strong. Padded shoulders. It's a look. So the issue was that these zoot suits, they required like a lot of material to make them. And during World War II, fabric was being rationed, okay? They needed them to make

wore stuff. Great. So being seen wearing a zoot suit at the time was like,

Oh my God. So anti-American. How dare you? How dare you? So rumors about zoot suiters, especially the Chicanos who wore them, started to spread. I mean, people had a negative opinion about them, but the zoot suits were finally like an excuse to let loose and just punish the Chicano community, really. This gave them a reason.

On June 3, 1943, hundreds of police officers and soldiers beat the shit out of anyone who was wearing a zoot suit. And it got so bad that they even started beating up anyone who looked like a person of color or looked Chicano. I mean, whether they were in a zoot suit or not.

Caesar was one of these suitors. His family had moved to Los Angeles and settled in a neighborhood known as a barrio. A barrio is a Spanish-speaking part of town, and many people who lived in these areas struggled with poverty. People in Caesar's barrio used to say, which means, get out if you can't.

Between having to work in the fields to support his family and getting beat up in the streets, Cesar, he was just ready to get the hell out, right? So he ends up joining the Navy when he was 17. He was one of over half a million Latinos who served in World War II. And actually their numbers are probably way higher than that. That's because if you were any type of Latin descent and you enrolled in the army, chances are

your race was marked as white on your official enrollment papers. So when he returned home after serving for two years, it's not like you got some kind of, woo, like, here I was welcome. You know, like, welcome home.

You're amazing. I mean, while he was gone, the relationship between Chicanos, law enforcement, and honestly, like society in general seemed to have gotten way worse because so many American men were shipped off to the war. There weren't enough people around to do jobs that required like hard labor. So the U.S. turned to Mexico asking for their help. So, yeah, of course, they're asking for Mexico's help. They come crying back like they always do.

So then the government creates the Bracero Program. Bracero translates to "strong armed ones." And for many Mexicans, this was seen as a good opportunity to make money in America. I mean, even if it was only for a short amount of time. But on the other hand, you know, these people were forced to work

Once again, grueling hours, live in horrible conditions, and be treated horribly in just general. Very similar to the migrant workers we talked about earlier. So once people from the Bracero program entered California, people in society just started to panic. The locals, the whites, were like, oh my god, these guys are going to take our jobs. And honestly, they had never seen that many Mexicans before, so...

You know, the whites get spooked easily. Soon, there were like all these signs posted all over restaurants that read like, we serve whites only. No Spanish or Mexicans. They ran articles in the newspaper about how Mexican-Americans weren't loyal to the country. What the hell, right? Like, what is this?

Caesar went back to work in the fields as soon as he got home from the war. And he once described just how difficult and backbreaking it was to work in the fields all day. So Caesar thought back to his upbringing with his mother and grandmother, and they like never turned anyone away who needed help, right? So he looked around him in the fields at thousands of migrant workers who had been treated as less than human.

For a little too long, he decided, you know what? It was time to take a stand. Caesar knew that writing letters and complaining would only do so much. The way to get real change in the country was to vote. So Caesar got involved with something called the Community Service Organization, and he made it his mission to get as many laborers registered to vote as possible. I guess he was so good at this that he even ran the organization for a couple of years.

It was clear that Caesar was a natural born leader. I mean, he was said to treat people with empathy and he spent his whole life up until that point working in the fields alongside the people he was fighting for. So it was like, you know, people trusted him. Caesar ended up launching his own newspaper for the farm workers called El Macriano, which translates to, quote, badly behaved. I think it's like a pretty badass name. Yeah.

Yeah. So he really started to make a public name for himself in 1965 when he organized farm workers to peacefully strike in response to their cruel treatment, which is pretty badass, right? One of the most famous strikes he helped organize was called the Delano Grape Strike. Now, this strike was started by the Filipino American farming community, and Cesar had his union actually join forces with them

I mean, power in numbers, right? And the strike centered around the shockingly low wages and high physical expectations of grape pickers in America. So the strike really encouraged everyday people to immediately stop buying and eating grapes. They figured if they did this, it would hit the farm owners where it hurt, in their balls.

and in their pocket. Yeah. And then maybe, you know, they'd start paying attention to the workers. And look, they were soon right. As soon as profits were affected, oh, oh, these people are panicking. What are we going to do? You know, it's like, hmm. So people started paying attention to Caesar and his unions. He started getting calls from other organizations asking like, hey, can you come here and like work your magic over here? And I mean, yeah,

great. It was in a bunch of different cities and this is like when Caesar teamed up with someone who would take the Chicano movement. You know that one good tank top that you wear like all year round? I mean it fits you just right so you wear it all the time but maybe now it's getting a little old. Shifting my wardrobe from summer to fall is always a challenge. Luckily, Quince offers timeless and high quality items that I

I love so I can make sure my wardrobe stays fresh and I don't blow my budget. They've got cashmere sweaters from $50, pants for every occasion, washable silk tops. And my favorite part, all Quince items are priced 50 to 80% less than similar brands. By partnering directly with top factories, Quince cuts out the cost of the middleman

and passes the savings on to us. And Quince only works with factories that use safe, ethical, and responsible manufacturing practices and premium fabrics and finishes. I recently got this 100% European linen short sleeve shirt. Ooh, I love linen. And you know, it was so comfortable, so cute. I can finally retire my old ratty tank top.

RIP. Make switching seasons a breeze with Quince's high quality closet essentials. Go to quince.com slash dark history for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. That's quince, Q-U-I-N-C-E dot com slash dark history to get free shipping and 365 day returns. quince.com slash dark history.

This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Most of you listening right now are probably multitasking. Yep, while you're listening to me talk, you're probably also driving, cleaning, exercising, or maybe even grocery shopping. But if you're not in some kind of moving vehicle, there's something else you could be doing right now. Getting an auto quote from Progressive Insurance.

It's easy and you can save money by doing it from your phone. Drivers who save by switching to Progressive save nearly $750 on average. And auto customers qualify for an average of seven discounts. Discounts for having multiple vehicles on your policy, being a homeowner and more.

So just like your favorite podcast, Progressive will be with you 24-7, 365 days a year, so you're protected no matter what. Multitask right now. Quote your car insurance at Progressive.com to join the over 28 million drivers who trust Progressive. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. National average 12-month savings of $744 by new customer survey who saved with Progressive between June 2022 and May 2023. Potential savings will vary. Discounts not available in all states and situations. ♪

to the next freaking level. Dolores Clara Fernandez, or as she's known today, Dolores Huerta. Okay, listen, she, Dolores is the shit. Okay, so she was born on April 10th, 1930 in like a little mining town of Dawson, New Mexico.

And her dad, his name was Juan Fernandez, was a farm worker by day and a union activist by night. So he fought for fair wages and better working conditions. And Juan, like he even ran for political office in 1938 and became representative for New Mexico.

Go off. Go all the way off. So from a young age, their family was politically involved. And Dolores said, quote, I remember when I was eight years old, I put a bumper sticker on a car for Franklin Delano Roosevelt. I don't know where I got those stickers or whose car I put it on. In my family, the idea of being informed about what was happening in the world was just part of growing up.

So just like Caesar, Dolores experienced insane prejudice as a child because of her indigenous roots. And one of her teachers even accused her of cheating in school because her papers were a little too well written. Okay. The teacher probably couldn't read.

But really, you just couldn't win. You couldn't win. But Dolores always had that hustle mindset. And it's probably because she grew up in the Great Depression and both of her parents were just hustlers, right? They needed to get by and they found a way. During the summer between school years, she would often work in the fields as a grape picker. And for picking up full buckets of grapes, she would get two bits.

In other words, a quarter. A quarter for a full bucket of grapes. That's a lot, right? Not the quarter, the grapes. I mean, it wasn't much, but it showed to her at a young age, like she was smart, she was savvy, and she could be self-sufficient. But most importantly, she learned from her parents, like how to organize a movement and

And Dolores' dad, Juan, was one of the founders of an early union for farm workers. He volunteered with the mine workers union too, since like their family lived in a mining town. And whoever Juan went for work, if the town didn't have a union, he would organize one. So all of this is naturally having an impact on

Little Dolores growing up, you know? And not only was Dolores' dad a union activist, but her mom, Alicia Chavez, owned a hotel where she would like rent rooms out to labor workers for low prices. Alicia was also an activist and was always supporting the workers. Dolores remembers that her mom said, quote, "If you see someone that's in need, then you have an obligation to help them," end quote.

After graduating high school in 1947, Dolores went to college and she got a degree in education. And between becoming like a mother and getting a divorce, just like figuring out how to be a single mom of two, she began working as a teacher. Now Dolores would say that she liked being a teacher, but she couldn't help noticing how many of her kids would be coming to class, coming to school in general, just hungry.

And Dolores naturally understood what was going on since both of her parents, you know, started as farmers. So she decided, you know, there was problem. There's more she could be doing to help. So she decided she wanted to move beyond the classroom.

So this is when she moved to Stockton, which is a city in Northern California, and there was a huge Chicano population in Stockton. And this is where Dolores once again sees firsthand just how horrible the working conditions were for Latino and Filipino farm workers. So this inspired her to like take a stand, but there was no union. The closest thing was a Latino civil rights group in Los Angeles.

So she started going to the meetings in L.A. and Delores was inspired by the things that they were able to accomplish, that she actually started her own chapter of the organization back in Stockton.

So Dolores, she rallied the community around her and like within just a few years, they started getting laws passed. I mean, for example, driver's license tests and voting ballots became available in Spanish. Hello, major. Huge. Before Dolores' time, it wasn't possible to get public assistance like employment or food stamps if you had a green card.

But with the support of her community, she changed that. She changed that too. So by the 70s, as long as you were a legal resident and had a green card, you could access the same things as your white neighbors. Basically, with enough people saying the same thing,

Dolores realized that like she could actually make politicians and the people in power listen to her or them really, the group. You just had to like make enough noise. Something I love about this is that Dolores was only five feet tall. Blah.

Love that. But she was a freaking powerhouse when it came to getting people to pay attention to her. She claimed her space, okay? But if the entire community of workers decided to just stop working and like go on strike, it would put pressure on the entire supply chain. So like suddenly their bosses were forced to listen to the workers' demands. They're like, we call the shots, bitches.

And if they did it, the produce would not get harvested. Okay. They couldn't deliver to their suppliers and no money would be made. Boom. Which, let's be real, that's the only part they cared about was the money. So, yeah. You guys saw the phrase or heard the phrase, si se puede? It means, yes, we can. And no, it wasn't Dora who thought of it. It was Dolores who thought of it.

I didn't know this. I'm a dumbass. Sorry, but no longer. Because Dolores actually took this quote and like made it part of her whole thing. And maybe that's where Dora got it.

Dora, Dolores, come on. Okay, here's a story about Cisa Pueda. I guess she was picketing in Arizona and because the state, they had like passed a law that said if you say the word boycott, which is essentially a strike word, right? You would say it. You could end up going to prison for six months. So Arizona was like, don't even say the word or straight to jail.

I mean, that's how powerful Dolores' movement was. Just the word could send you to jail. So Dolores had gone to Arizona and was rallying the farm workers to join her in protesting that law. And apparently she went to speak to a group of professionals in the farm industry to see like if they would support her. Maybe, you know, like walk around, wave a sign, maybe a middle finger, depending on who you are. But these businessmen essentially told her to like stand down. They were like, oh no, no, no.

we don't do that here in arizona no se puede meaning like no you can't but dolores wasn't gonna like take no for an answer and she told him back like no in arizona boom everything just lit off fire i don't know no one was gonna silence her she's gonna turn it flip it back on you boom

Bye. So she went back to her union meeting that she hosted every single night and she told them what happened. She's like this guy, he said like, "No se puede," whatever. But I said, "Si se puede." And everyone's like, "Ahh!" And just losing their shit. Yeah. But everyone started shouting, "Si se puede, si se puede!" Boof! It became the slogan for the whole Chicano movement.

I love this story. It's a cool story. Fucking love Dolores. Basically, you did not want to fuck with Dolores, okay? But that didn't mean people were going to just leave the farm workers alone. Like, you know, people in charge hated seeing farm workers protest out in the open. They're like, "Ew."

- Gross. - While Dolores was out on the picket line alongside these workers, she saw all kinds of violence. The growers, quote unquote growers, these are the people who own the farms, they would try to run down picketing workers in their cars.

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- Dark history.

Dolores's reputation left an impression on Caesar and in 1955 he met Dolores at a fundraising dinner up in like Oakland and they had been making waves and getting the attention of the media with their own individual movements so it was like about time they meet. Then in 1962 they decided to team up to create the UFW, stands for United Farm Workers Union, and together

Caesar and Dolores secured the first legal work contracts for these laborers. I know, I know. These contracts would guarantee seemingly basic things like drinking water, breaks, time to use the bathroom. Just the basics. I mean, they didn't have any of these basic things before the contracts, which is wild, right? Because you would hope they would be given...

Anyway, so someone had to fight tooth and nail just for them to get some water. Dolores and Caesar also got the farm workers a union, which then is job security and also real contracts. The UFW became a huge force in the California grape strike that Caesar helped lead. And that grape strike, I guess it lasted for like five years. And it only ended in 1970 when the growers finally stopped

signed union contracts. Now this meant that they had to play by the rules and actually give their workers all of those basic rights. Oh, boo-hoo for them. Boo-hoo!

And now, thanks to leaders like Delores and Cesar, workers in unions were legally allowed to strike against their employers. Before, they had no protections. They were like, "Good luck, bud. You're getting fired by lunch." And now the state had to support your picket line. This became called the California Agriculture Labor Relations Act.

Super easy, just blows right off the tongue. And the movement had come a pretty long way from not being allowed to say the word boycott. This act also established a board whose job it was to make sure unions had organized leaders and representatives, which essentially meant that they were making sure unions had all the tools and leaders they needed to strike when they needed to.

There were still more problems to tackle, like pesticides. Yeah, random, but real. Because if you listen to our Monsanto episode, you'll know that pesticides are chemicals that are sprayed around crops to get rid of bugs or weeds that might kill the crops, right? So there were hundreds, hundreds of studies that showed these pesticides are toxic to human health.

Right? Can we agree? We agree. And on top of that, until the 1970s, growers were allowed to spray pesticides into their fields while the workers were working. Yeah, they thought that showering workers with these toxic pesticides was the right thing to do. That is, until the UFW stepped in.

So according to Dolores, these pesticides were causing severe damage to the health of the workers. And Dolores even said, quote, pesticides in the fields really affect women even more than they do men.

So you'd think this would be enough to get the farms to agree to stop spraying, but it was an uphill battle.

And the UFW today is actually still fighting it. They didn't stop spraying those chemicals. No, they did not, nay nay. Which is not only rude, you guys, but like, they're killing people. Instead, they gave like workers protective gear, quote, quote, protective gear, who really knows, you know, to help them guard themselves from the toxic chemical exposure that they're in all day and still touching regardless. Like, what?

Probably like a pair of goggles is what I'm imagining. They're like, this should help. To this day, this is still a critical issue for like those farm workers. According to Dolores, quote, even though we were able to get many of the pesticides banned, they keep inventing new ones, end quote. We're looking at you, Monsanto, or I should say Bayer. Yeah, talking to you. We're watching you.

I'm gonna get murdered, I can't wait. I can't wait to get blackmailed. Around the same time as this pesticide controversy, the Chicano movement came to an end. By 1970, every organization you can think of, I'm talking from the police department to the FBI, they were monitoring everything the Chicano movement was doing.

On August 29th, 1970 in Los Angeles, a peaceful protest led by the Chicano movement went south. We all remember what happened in the Zoot Suit riots, right? I hope so. We didn't talk about it that long ago. It was like that, but it was more dead.

The LAPD reportedly opened fire on the protest, and as a result, they killed several innocent people. And then on top of that, the authorities had been infiltrating the Chicano movement for years. So the organization was kind of crumbling from within. Between that and the murders at the peaceful protest, it was a devastating sign that the Chicano movement had come to an end.

And sadly, many of the most pressing issues facing migrant workers back over like seven years are still a problem today.

Caesar died on April 23, 1993 at the age of 66. And for much of his life, he was known as just a farm worker and union leader who liked to stir up trouble. But today, he's known as one of the great American civil rights leaders of our time. The union he helped create, the National Farm Workers Association, still exists to this day. Something that really stood out to me while I was learning about all of this is that for a while,

Dolores didn't want to take credit for the work that she was doing. She didn't even want to be like vice president of the National Farm Workers Association up until Caesar told her it would be crazy not to. She said afterwards, if Caesar hadn't told me to, I wouldn't have like thought about it. And I think that's a problem with us women. We don't think we need to be in the power structure. Sometimes we think, well, I'm not really prepared to take that position or that role.

that role. But I say to women out there, just do it like the guys do it. Pretend that you know, and then you learn on the job." I mean, hell yeah. I think if there's anyone we should be listening to about taking charge at work,

It's Dolores. Hello. Dolores is still alive today and still fighting and fucking kicking ass. She's in her 90s and she is thriving, okay? She's still inspiring generations of activists to stand up for underrepresented workers through her work with the Dolores Huerta Foundation.

I'm gonna link down in the description below where you can learn more about like the work Dolores's Foundation is doing. Make sure to check it out and look if there's anything that Dolores and Cesar taught us it's to stand up for yourself, never apologize for who you are and even if something seems impossible your voice, our voice has power and they matter.

Thank you. Thank you. Vote for me. 2024, whatever the fuck. Anyways, thank you guys so much for listening. I hope you learned something new. Next week, we'll be talking about one of my favorite things on the planet.

something that every single one of us has in common. It's something that, ooh, it has such a weird past that you're gonna be just as shocked as I was. It was a substance that used to be used as medicine and it single-handedly enslaved millions of people around the world.

Can you guess? No? Well, it causes many diseases today, and the government has been trying to step in and ban it. Next week, we'll be talking about the dark history of sugar. Yeah, sugar. It's very humbling. Remember...

Don't be afraid to ask questions to get the whole story because you deserve that. You can join me over on my YouTube where you can watch these episodes on Thursday after the podcast airs. And while you're there, you can also catch my murder mystery and makeup episode.

Now, I'd love to hear you guys' reactions to today's story. So make sure to use the hashtag dark history over on social media so I can see what you're saying. And maybe you'll end up in one of my videos. For example, Desert Holly. Shout out to you, girl. Because you commented on our Tyson video from season three, quote,

I just hollered at my boyfriend from the bathroom, shower time, that Tyson Chicken helped McDonald's make the chicken nugget. And in the same breath said, there are thousands of girls all over the world right now telling their boyfriends random facts about Tyson Chicken at this very moment. He belly laughed.

End quote. Honestly, I love fun facts, don't you? Tyson Chicken, full of them. I love shouting fun facts at a boyfriend. I wish I had a boyfriend. So lonely. Teresa Longo, 7068, says, quote, great episode as always, Bailey. So I noticed you were not moving your right arm. You okay? You gesture a lot. I do too when I talk. So just hoping you are well. Hugs. The truth is...

Sometimes I like to touch myself when I'm filming. It just makes it a better experience. You're welcome. Nathasia Renee, Stana B1JC.

said, quote, day one of me asking Bailey to do a dark history of money. P.S. I'm a broke AF student. End quote. Girl, that's very vague. I'm going to need some specifics. Okay, listen, are we, are you meaning like, why are certain precedents on money? Why is money green? What's up with that triangle in the eye?

Why do we have money? When did we decide paper money is good? You know, I mean, these are really good questions. And honestly, I'm intrigued. But there's so many directions we could go. Anyways, don't forget to leave a comment because maybe I'll read it and say something funny back because I'm hilarious. Thank you.

Dark History is an Audioboom original. This podcast is executive produced by Bailey Sarian High, Junia McNeely from 3Arts, Kevin Grush, and Matt Enloe from Maiden Network. A big thank you to our writers, Joey Scavuzzo, Katie Burris, Allison Filobos, and me, Bailey Sarian.

Production lead, Brian Jaggers. Research provided by Xander Elmore and the Dark History Researcher Team. Special thank you to our expert, Dr. Eduardo Pagan. And I'm your host, Bailey Sarian. I hope we have a great day. Make good choices. And I'll be talking to you next week. Goodbye.

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I'm Stanzi Potenza. And I'm Brad Padre. Launching June 13th is our new podcast, Late to the Party. In this post-ironic chat show, we'll show you a window into our world of crazy post-ironic thoughts. An unlikely friendship founded on a shared love for riffs, ranting, and getting absolutely wrecked.

Consider this an invitation to our inside jokes. You're late to the party, but no one cool ever shows up on time. Follow Late to the Party on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to this kind of stuff.