The Justice for Janitors campaign frequently used street theater to enliven their demonstrations and dramatize their cause. Among their most recognizable characters was a luchador named Mop Man, who (in comics and performances) defended janitors against abuses by the boss. In this comic from the early 1990s, Mop Man narrates a day-in-the-life of a janitor who works five, sometimes six days a week for minimum wages, to explain that the union fights for workers’ rights. Of particular concern to this janitor is his exposure to dangerous chemicals – he is forced to eat lunch surrounded by them because the boss doesn’t provide a safe place to eat lunch, and his boss forces him to use them in his work without providing proper equipment or training.

From the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), United Service Workers West (USWW) records, circa 1935-2008 (LSC.1940), UCLA Library Special Collections.