The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1931-05-18
By A. BROWN.

constitute at least so per cent. The
three main crops are lettuce, melons
and cotton. There are also other
crops, such as asparagus, peas, citrus
fruits, etc. The conditions of the
workers in these fields are so rotten
that spontaneous strikes are con-
tinually breaking out The main
demands in these strikes are higher
wages. There have also been cases
of demands for better conditions,
such as better housing, supplying
wood by the rancher, etc. Bakers
field, Nov, l9SoD
In Imperial Valley there are con-
centrated as high as $4,000 workers
at one time. These are mostly Mex
lean and Filipino, a few Negroes and
HinduS. The Mexicans are mostly
families and have a great deal of
children and young workers amongst
them. The Finpi1os are generally
single and rs per cent OF them are
under Is years of age. Now we OBJ
serve a new phenomena. Thousands
of whites, ruined, poverty-stricken
farmers and their families, workers
from the towns, from the sea-are
streaming in, competing with the
colonial labor for a miserable eX-
istence. OF course the ranchers use
this to stir up further race antagon-
isms and hatred
Direst Poverty.
In the camps, which vary IN size
from so to 500 people, you will find
every sort of makesllift shelter, from
tents to brush nuts. There may be
two or three toilets "-holes that
give off a vile stencil. These toilets
are entirely inadequate, evern morn
ing and evening there are long lines
of people waiting their turn. Drink
ing water is not supplied on the
ranches. Water is gotten from irri-
CATION bitches that have all kinds
of garbage and filth thrown into
them. AS a result the entire camp
often gets sick-usually with diarrean
and cramps. Epidemics can quickly
spread in such cases, and of course
the workers have no money for doc
tors OF medicine.
Work Not Steady.
The work is not steady. This year
the workers waited as long as two
months for the peas to start picking,
and then were rewarded with two or
three or four days a week work ay-
eraging about rs cents to 81 day.
AS a re5ult-Work being 50 spasmodic
the workers want to keep their
children home from school, to help
get In few more pennies. The con-
slant moving of the workers from
field TO field and town to town keeps
the children from attending school
the length of time they should,
The life of these camps is dull
and monotonous for the children and
young workers. They are confronted
especially on days they are waiting
for work. with absolutely nothing to
do. There is nowhere to go. To 90
10 town requires money, to have any
sports requires a place (the camp
yard is not sufficient and sport
facilities. There is nothing to read
In this depressing atmosphere the
bosses can and do spread all kinds
of anti working class propaganda.
These arc the conditions in gen.
eral They vary in different parts
of the state and in different crops
In cotton, for instance, most places
as yet, furnish cabins and some even
furnish wood In the fruit thinning
and picking as also III The peas on
the coast Salinas, WatSonville, San
Jose, etc. many of the workers live
in auto camps and go to work ir
their cars every day. This picture
does not describe the whole situation
adequately. But it will give us ar
inkling of how sadly We have ne
elected agricultural work.
Organize Agricultural Workers.
The Party had attempted to or
ganize the agricultural workers ever
before the r. U. U. L. was formed
Comrade Erickson and others hac
been working around Salinas for the
A. w. I. L. until the strike broke
out in Imperial Valley, January
1880. Then the work started in the
Valley and ended for the time being
in the disastrous fashion that w
know. We learned from this expert
ence three valuable lessons: l. Thai
an organization is not built on mass
meetings. 2 That you have Il
reckon with the bosses police anc
state. 3. That the main basis Of oul
organization must be the farm com
mittees. The latter is very difficult
for some activeS 10 understand
Especially cadres that are new in tn
field and behold situation wherein
the worker stays on ranch only &
week or SO and especially in the
peaches for as short time as hall
a day. The solution seems to liz
in calling the workers together II
mass meetings and calling a strike
giving it publicity through leaflet,
and meetings. (This was the case II
Bakersfield last fall and more re-
Gently in the peas and lettuce II
Pajaro Valley amongst the Filipino
and Mexican workers. The futility
and shaky foundation Of such tao
tics was proven time and again, moi
only in spontaneous strikes, but
'rikcs VIC had hand in. There