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1973 1978 1984 1985 1986 1987 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1998 1999 2000 2006 2014 ACLU AFL-CIO back pay Bert Corona boycott CASA CHIRLA CIWA CLUE David Sickler Garment Workers Guatemala HERE Local 11 ILGWU immigrant rights Jobs with Peace Justice for Janitors LAANE LA Fed LAPD Living Wage Campaign Los Angeles Civil Unrest of 1992 SEIU-USWW UFCW union democracy United Farm Workers UNITE HERE
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ACLU News Release: Loya v. INS
In 1972-73, the Immigration and Naturalization service carried out widespread raids on workplaces, businesses, and homes in Los Angeles. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Southern California, in collaboration with the Center for Autonomous Social Action (CASA) and other allies in the Latinx community, filed suit to stop the raids–a case that became known…
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United Workers of Local 11 rank-and-file campaign
During the 1970s, the Hotel and Restaurant Employees union (HERE) Local 11 in Los Angeles was losing power as restaurant owners dropped their union contracts and hotels cut wages and benefits. In 1978 a multiracial group of members calling themselves United Workers of Local 11 challenged the union’s long-serving leader Scotty Allan. The group distributed…
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Claiming the right to full union membership
In 1978 members of HERE Local 11 launched a campaign to unseat long-time union leader Andrew “Scotty” Allan. United Workers of Local 11 ran a multiracial slate of men and women committed to greater member participation in the 20,000 member union. Their candidate for the office of secretary-treasurer was Daniel Ruiz, a resident immigrant and…
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CODIL General Assembly, June 1978
After years of fighting deportation sweeps in Los Angeles, activists associated with the Centro de Acción Social Autónomo (CASA) formed special committee to address workplace raids by the INS and to advocate for the rights of undocumented workers generally. The Comité Obrero en Defensa de los Indocumentados en Lucha (CODIL, or in English the Workers…
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Somma waterbed workers win back pay, 1985
In 1984, workers at the Somma waterbed factory in East Los Angeles began organizing fellow workers at neighborhood soccer games and decide to join the ILGWU. Most of the workers were immigrants from Mexico and Central America, many without documentation. Their employer was Angel Echevarria, a prominent figure in the Latino community and in Los…
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Jobs with Peace
How can progressive political movements win power in geographically expansive and multiracial cities like Los Angeles? The answer, according to the Los Angeles Jobs with Peace campaign was “coalition architecture,” an intentional strategy to link the interests of organized labor with the peace movement, the women’s movement, and the African American civil rights movement through…
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Unions review impact of immigration reform
The AFL-CIO published this information for unions and workers in the wake of the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) of 1986. The law created a process for many undocumented residents to regularize their status, and the pamphlet highlights organized labor’s role in helping “undocumented workers attain legal status and prevent discrimination by employers.” In…
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Seguro Medico? Si Se Puede! Mopman y Local 399 Luchando por tus Derechos!
In this cartoon from the Justice for Janitors campaign, two workers worry about the cost of healthcare. The superhero Mopman tells them that having good health insurance is like “having extra money in your pockets.” In cartoons and street theater, the character Mopman was part of the union’s strategy to reach rank-and-file janitors.
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Police disrupt janitors march on Century City, June 1990
During a 1990 strike against cleaning contractors in the Century City office complex, Los Angeles police confront and beat janitors and their supporters. The confrontation led to a city inquiry into police officers’ actions, and a settlement between janitors and their employers. This video compilation was produced by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and…
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Bruised But Not Beaten | Herridos pero no vencidos
On June 15, 1990, the LAPD armed with nightsticks attacked group of peaceful demonstrators outside Century City that included women and children. Not intimidated by police brutality, the demonstrators continued to protest until fair working conditions were given.
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Stop the Cooperation between the Police and the INS
A flyer announcing a protest rally and march organized by the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (CHIRLA) in the fall of 1990. Formed in the wake of the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act, CHIRLA drew together organizations and activists from many communities to demand inclusion for immigrants. Reflecting growing progressive coalition…
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Cleaning Workers to Go on Strike: October 19, 1990
A clipping of a 1990 article describing a Justice for Janitors training held in from of the Los Angeles Police Department. Janitors were preparing to use non-violent civil disobedience in their strike on Bradford Building Services in November of that year. Translated from Spanish by Juan Torres. “Cleaning workers to go on strike” La Opinion,…
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Building sustainable peace in Guatemala, the union perspective
From the 1970s to the 1990s, the Central American nations of El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Guatemala experienced civil war, government-sponsored death squads, and genocide. Many who fled the violence settled in Los Angeles were they joined other immigrant workers in low-wage service sector jobs, and became part of the unionization drives of the 1990s. Immigrants…
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City on the Edge
Release shortly after the 1992 civil unrest in Los Angeles, City on the Edge criticized the low-wage policies of the tourism industry and challenged political leaders to embrace equitable development. Featuring interviews with historian Mike Davis, business leaders, city officials, and workers, the film offers a glimpse of LA contending with deep social and economic…