68 Photos From American Protests That Show How People Have Fought For Change Over The Past Century

In 1965, American grape farmworkers lived in some of the harshest conditions in the country, being paid below minimum wage (agricultural workers were intentionally excluded), held in forced labor camps without running water, sprayed with pesticides while on the job, and denied the right to form unions. On September 8, 1965, Filipino American farmworkers in Delano, California, led by labor activist Larry Itlion, walked off the fields, demanding not only higher wages but also union recognition, safer conditions, and human dignity. A week later, Mexican American farm workers joined them. The two groups merged to become the United Farm Workers, one of the most successful multiracial labor unions in American history.

Led by Itlion and Dolores Huerta, the strike lasted five years. The union called for a nationwide boycott of California grapes, and by 1970, 17 million Americans refused to buy grapes. This was one of the most successful consumer boycotts in US history.