Watsonville Solidarity Day June 29, 1986

Jackson held hands with striker workers in the Watsonville High School cafeteria

Watsonville Solidarity Day was held 10 months into the strike, and included civil rights leader and former presidential candidate Reverend Jesse Jackson.  Jackson flew into the Watsonville Airport and spoke at Watsonville High School and Callaghan Park.  His presence raised the profile of the strike nationally, and brought in national labor and civil rights organizations.  In his speech Jackson compared the strikers to  protesters in Selma, Alabama, noting that both small towns were unlikely places to start a movements for emancipation. He also criticized the at-large election system and urged people to vote.

Questions

  • Why would having someone as nationally known such as the Reverend Jesse Jackson speak at a rally be helpful?
  • A large number of unions, labor councils, and organizations from beyond the community are listed as supporting the event.  How does this differ from the earlier Solidarity Days?  How might this involvement add pressure on the canneries?

Labor on the Line: Constitutional Rights Threatened in Watsonville

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Text of flyer below (PDF 2 pages) Download Text of flyer below (PDF 2 pages)

Poster for Watsonville Dia de solidaridad con orador Jesse JacksonWatsonville solidarity day poster with speaker Jesse Jackson

Varni, Diane. Photo of Jackson with striking workers. Register Pajaronian, 30 June 1986.

Note:  The Register Pajaronian is available online through the Watsonville Public Library Links to an external site..

"Constitutional Rights Threatened in Watsonville." Labor on the Line, 2 July 1986. Labor Archives and Research Center, San Francisco State University.

“Watsonville Solidarity Day / Dia de Solidaridad.” Flyer, 29 June 1985. Watsonville Canneries Strike Binders, California Agricultural Workers' History Center, Watsonville Public Library.