There will be No 'One Big Union': The Struggle for Interracial Labor Unionism in California Agriculture, 1933-1939
Author: Cruz, Adrian
Date Published: 2010
In California between 1933-1939, Mexican, Filipino, and Japanese farm workers engaged in far-reaching labor strikes. In this article, the author argues that the practice of White supremacy prevented interracial farm labor unionism via the creation of a racial hierarchy that aligned the Japanese, Mexican, and Filipinos into specific positions. Previous scholarship de-emphasizes the roles of race and racism in analysis of farm worker mobilization. The author focuses on four key actors which actively maintained the hierarchy: landowners, the state, organized labor, and the White public.
Date Published: 2010
In California between 1933-1939, Mexican, Filipino, and Japanese farm workers engaged in far-reaching labor strikes. In this article, the author argues that the practice of White supremacy prevented interracial farm labor unionism via the creation of a racial hierarchy that aligned the Japanese, Mexican, and Filipinos into specific positions. Previous scholarship de-emphasizes the roles of race and racism in analysis of farm worker mobilization. The author focuses on four key actors which actively maintained the hierarchy: landowners, the state, organized labor, and the White public.
