We just saw an infomercial on the news about Dolores Huerta and how she’s a prideful part of o

We just saw an infomercial on the news about Dolores Huerta and how she’s a prideful part of our Chicano history. The ad went on to talk about the United Farm-Worker union she set up with other Chicanos like Chavez. My parents have had various jobs since they took the dangerous journey into the U.S. But they’ve always stayed partly or full-time employed as farm-workers.An aunt of mine had lived in Washington State for a few years, and I can still remember when she and her family came to visit us in the Deep South. We were living in South Carolina at the time and she showed up saying, “You have no rights here as laborers, it’s time we take you to the union side of the country!”And off we went. This was the first time I’d ever seen snow, (I was four) but I’ll never forget what all my aunt’s family kept saying: “You’re gonna love Washington State.”One of the first memories of Washington State (other than the really large amounts of snow) was going to KDNA - a radio station that proudly and appropriately donned the title of being “The voice of the farm-worker.” We’d visit the radio station weekly to be trained on pesticides, how to report injuries without the fear of my parents being deported, and they always gave us hot chocolate, pan dulce, food, and warm clothing. In the fields, my parents would bring a portable radio (as did many others) and we’d blast Radio KDNA - since they would also give farm-workers a legit and verified head’s up on La Migra raiding and terrorizing certain farms.For the longest time, I thought KDNA was the same thing as the UFW. It isn’t until right now that I’m reading historical accounts on the immense history that the makers of KDNA even did for Chicanos, Mexicanos, and all farm-workers throughout the country!After becoming the first all-Spanish speaking radio station in the history of Washington State, word of their groundbreaking work caught the ear of the UFW. Cesar Chavez visited them and the rest is history! “According to KDNA station manager Ricardo García, Chávez not only publicly applauded the small Yakima station but his visit inspired the UFW to craft their own community-based radio stations along California’s agricultural heartlands.”I’m so proud to have learned about worker’s rights as a small child, experiencing my first strike and labor victories with my parents and family, but most of all realizing that I was very lucky to be born into a family of luchadores. /rant -- source link

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