1
I was born in Yuma, Arizona
in a ranch owned by my family
but we lost it in the depression.
Like many other families, we moved
to California to work in the fields.
But when we arrived, we found out that
there was more people than jobs.
We went from being farm owners
to farm workers in one day.
And at the age of 11,
I started working in the fields.
That's where I witnessed,
for the first time,
the injustice and the indignities
suffered by the farm workers.
You see the problem is that in 1936
the country changed,
because the National Labor Relations Act
went into effect.
And it gave most workers the right
to join the union and bargain collectively.
Except the farm workers,
they were excluded from this protection
and I was one of them.
I wanted to do something, so I joined
the CSO, Community Services Organization.
And that is where I learned
how to organize people.
We were working in the cities and I
realized that, to make a difference,
I had to get out
and start organizing the workers.
So, in 1962, I went back
to the fields to do just that.
(BREATHES HEAVILY)
(SPANISH)
Juan de la Cruz!
I'm a friend of your cousin, Felipe.
Are you Juan?
Can we talk?
Sure. But not here.
I'm done in about four hours.
(VEHICLE APPROACHING)
You need to leave now. They're coming.
(HORN HONKING)
(ENGINE REVVING)
Can I help you, sir?
Were you talking to those workers?
Is there something I can do for you?
I'm talking to you.
Do you own anything?
(SCOFFS)
No.
Can you read or write?
(CHUCKLES)
Well... No.
Of course not.
Who in your family works?
(SIGHS)
Me and my wife.
And my kids. The older ones anyways.
(CHUCKLES)
The other ones are still too young.
Do you want more for your kids?
Of course.
But...
Most of the people are afraid.
They have to feed their kids.
It's not easy doing it alone.
I'll return in one month
to help you start organizing.
But I need you to gather
everyone you can here.
OK, that's fine.
And you won't be alone anymore.
If we want to organize farm workers,
if we're really serious,
it's not gonna happen here, not with them.
It's just one setback, Cesar, it takes a while
to build trust, you have to be patient.
You know, they really don't care about
the farm worker, Fred.
Gilbert, that's not true.
See that's what I'm talking about, Fred,
see I have to be where it's happening.
I have to get out of Los Angeles
and go back to the fields where I started.
You know, we are doing this together, okay?
You knew this could happen,
that is why we have a plan.
But not in an office.
It's not the time to walk out now.
You know what it takes,
that is why I brought you in.
The CSO will be behind you, no matter what,
but please at least sleep on it.
I am not tired, Fred.
I want to get my hands dirty.
- Cesar...
- I'm with him. He's right.
You will go to new schools
and make new friends.
You're going to be fine.
Your father and I grew up on the fields.
Which team plays for Delano?
Your tio Ruc and tia Petra live in Delano,
so do our cousins. It's gonna be good.
HELEN: Okay, let's take a vote.
Who wants to go to Delano?
MAN ON RADIO:...a wonderful day
in Southern California.
- Sandy Koufax on the mound.
- No!
Sandy coming off that
beautiful no-hitter last week.
Caullison just waving that bat
back and forth.
- Pare, I am trying to listen to the game.
- Koufax trying to keep
his winning streak going.
HELEN: Could you stop? Stop!
Top of the fourth,
Dodgers leading two to nothing.
Koufax delivers and it's
a line drive down the left field line...
Fair ball!
(MAN ON RADIO
SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY)
I can't hear. Can you turn it up?
CESAR: I think we, uh, lost the signal.
You promised me a three-bedroom house.
I said I would try, Mansi.
It was short notice.
But I gave you two months.
That's short notice!
Uncle Cesar.
- That goes in the bedroom, Chato.
- It doesn't fit.
It doesn't fit.
Hey, Cesar, we've lived in a lot worse.
We'll be fine.
Can you get the heavy stuff
in the truck please?
(SIGHS)
If you put eight kids in that one car,
you can put them in that house!
We can find a bigger one
in a couple of months.
CESAR: And then we gotta
move all over again?
FOREMAN: Forty-eight, forty-nine,
fifty, fifty-one,
fifty-two,
fifty-three!
That's all for today!
I hear they are looking for bodies
at the onion fields.
GILBERT: I found the same thing in Hanford.
The workers are scared.
Then we need to hold twice as many
house meetings than we did in Selma.
(INHALES SHARPLY)
- What's the matter?
- It's my back.
(CHUCKING)
(SPEAKING SPANISH)
You can't take real work anymore.
It hurts even when I don't work.
You should take it easy.
What, and live on just
what Helen makes? No.
We are going to make the kids work
on the weekends now.
(INDISTINCT CONVERSATION)
PETRA: but she went and told everybody
at the church,
and now everybody has...
HELEN: Look who is here.
And very dirty.
Did you walk here from Oxnard?
Ola.
I thought maybe you weren't coming back.
- It's only been two weeks.
- It's been 18 days.
Eighteen days...
Cesar.
CESAR: Dolores!
(GASPS)
Look at you.
You definitely got your hands dirty.
This is Angela. Say, "Hi, Cesar."
- Hey, mamita.
- (CLICKING TONGUE)
I'm gonna put her to bed.
How long are you guys visiting us?
Oh, well, word is you can't
do this without me, so...
You are staying?
Well, of course. You think I'm going to
let you mess up what you've started here?
But before you do anything,
you need to go talk to Fernando.
I need to go talk to Fernando?
Okay.
(MUSIC PLAYING OVER RADIO)
(TURNS RADIO OFF)
Hi, Poli.
What happened to your eye?
Nothing.
You wanna talk about this nothing?
Nope.
The kids here are idiots.
They hate us, you know?
They came up on me and Chats,
a bunch of them.
They wouldn't stop calling us "beaners."
Beaners? Is that the best they got?
I've been called much worse.
Greaser,
"wetback,
"spic."
That one doesn't even make sense.
"Brown nigger."
I never heard that one.
(CHUCKLES) Uh-huh.
I learned a lot in the Navy.
Here, put this on your eye.
Who started it?
I told you, they started calling us names.
No, who started the fight?
We didn't have a choice.
You always have a choice.
I knew you wouldn't get it.
MAN ON RADIO: although the
official military word is that
these are only mopping up operations,
in five separate actions...
GILBERT: We need to bring the
people together, like a convention.
DOLORES: We need to get
everybody together in one place
so they can see how strong we are.
We should start a credit union.
To loan people money?
It'll give us credibility
and it will help people during the winter.
Hey, remember me? Eli Ordonez.
I saw you in Salinas at that other meeting
you were doing.
If you want, I can help pass those around.
MAN: I have a cousin who has no papers.
You tell your cousin,
if he works in the fields,
he has the right to representation.
(CESAR SPEAKING)
What is happening here in Delano
is the same thing that is happening
in Salinas or in Stockton.
If we don't get organized,
the bosses are going to treat us like...
Excuse me.
Who are you?
Cesar Chavez.
DOLORES: How much are you
asking for, Chucho?
CHUCHO: Twenty-five dollars.
(SIGHING) How about 10, Chucho?
Look at all these other people
who also want money.
(CESAR SPEAKING)
My daughter has some questionnaires.
We want to know what concerns you.
Come on, just do that for us.
Here, people can put messages
to their family, or anyone, it's free.
Want to see the union paper?
(SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
(LAUGHING)
Sheriff, every night this goes on.
And I have to tell my husband to rush home
because I'm frightened
about what is going on over there.
We are decent folk
and don't want any trouble.
I'm terrified for my children
and who knows where...
Okay... Okay... Ladies... Ladies...
Let me make sure I understand this.
- You say they get together every night?
- Every night.
And there is 50 of them?
Fifty-seven. I count 57.
Fifty-seven?
(INDISTINCT CONVERSATION)
Mr. Chavez?
Yes?
How are you doin' today?
Fine. How can I help you?
I just wanted to introduce myself.
- I'm Sheriff...
- I know who you are.
You seem to be gathering quite a crowd.
Is there a law against that?
No, not really.
But I would like to ask you some questions
about some of the people around you
and their affiliations.
Affiliations to what?
Let's say the communist party.
- Communists?
- Yes.
(TRANSLATING)
(CROWD LAUGHS)
Do you mind tellin' me what's so funny?
It's that we are Catholic.
How can Catholics be communists?
I've seen stranger things.
Mr. Chavez, do you mind
if we take a look around?
Do you have a warrant?
Not on me.
So you're asking me for a favor?
I think you'd be doing yourself a favor.
(DOLORES SPEAKING)
Come on. There's nothing to see here.
Come in.
We have nothing to hide.
So what they doin' here?
You givin' away free pinatas or something?
It's a credit union.
No shit.
Where's the money coming from?
Donations.
Here's a box if you're interested.
I don't know exactly what you're up to here
but the citizens of Delano,
they don't care much for subversives.
They respect the law.
So do we.
Especially the Bill of Rights.
Ever read the Bill of Rights?
(CHUCKLES)
Let's go.
FOREMAN ON BULLHORN:
Listen up, all of you in there.
You have 10 minutes
to vacate the premises.
You are now trespassing and will be
prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
We are not moving!
Is that you, Larry?
Yeah. Yeah, it's me.
Larry, you get your people out of there now
and get back to work.
I'll forget everything.
No blacklisting, no nothing.
(DOGS BARKING)
Sorry, that's not good enough.
You cut our wages too goddamn much.
We starve on what you pay us anyhow.
Go.
(GLASS SHATTERING)
(LARRY SHOUTING)
Nobody leave!
(CLAMORING)
Stay together, stay strong!
The growers cut their pay in half.
Now they have barricaded themselves
in the camps.
This thing is blowing up.
- The Filipinos?
- Yeah.
And now the growers are recruiting
our people to break the strikes.
That's why Larry specifically asked
for you, Cesar.
He knows he can't win without us.
Oh, and by the way,
who gives a shit about the Filipinos?
(SCOFFS) No mames.
They undercut us left and right.
Do you think they would strike for us?
They play the races against each other,
that is their tactic.
Are we a union or not?
(APPLAUSE)
(ELI SPEAKING)
Our brother Cesar Chavez
will speak to us now.
(APPLAUSE)
(CESAR SPEAKING)
Brothers and sisters.
Today our fellow Filipino workers
have taken a vital step
towards the fight for freedom and dignity
that poverty has denied us.
And they have come to us
and asked a very important question.
Whether we're prepared to set our
differences apart and join their strike.
But the most important thing to consider
is if news of this strike remains only in
Delano, then we will have been defeated.
Because they not only own the land,
but also the police and judges.
If we show the world
their abuse, greed, and brutality
then our voice will be heard
and responded to.
And when they see that our actions are just
they will understand
that our cause is just.
Then we will prevail.
Yes we can!
Strike! I
(ALL CHANTING)
The growers are going to be...
Larry, now that we are together,
the growers are gonna have to...
I'm not worried about them.
My people are angry.
This thing has been building for too long,
it's ready to explode.
Everyone is angry, we just have
to manage our own people.
I have people from Stockton to Coachella!
I didn't say it was going to be easy,
but if you take care of your side,
I take care of mine, we'll be fine.
- There are things we can't control.
- No, there are things we have to control.
So who the hell is this Cesar Chavez?
Nobody knows.
Somebody said he was from Arizona.
Word is he used to hang around Alinsky
and the other commies from the CSO.
He's been up and down the valley,
stirring up trouble.
I heard he's Mexican.
Seems a safe bet.
They've come out with this newspaper.
Got this beaner character in there
named Don Sotaco.
There he is.
He's kinda funny. (CHUCKLES)
Well, it's a cartoon,
but I'm not sure it's funny.
Who cares, most of our workers
are illiterate.
Yeah, but you can understand a cartoon
without being able to read.
So, this Don Sotaco,
(INHALES DEEPLY)
he, uh, informs the workers
about their rights.
- And this is what, a weekly?
- Mmm-hmm.
Thank God it isn't a daily.
Although, 52 weeks a year,
that is a lot of rights, Sheriff.
Long live the strike!
Long live the farmworker!
Long live our cause!
Long live our farmworker movement!
Did they confirm?
- Of course.
- Anyone...
Mostly local, but some are actually
coming down from San Francisco, Arizona...
- Where are they?
- I don't know. They should be here by now.
(GATE UNLOCKS)
Get the hell off our property!
Go back to Mexico!
Stay calm, don't react.
FOREMAN 1: We don't need you. Wetbacks.
- FOREMAN 2: Get out of here!
- Don't react, just keep moving.
We don't need you.
We want you out of our country.
We want you back to Mexico.
Get the hell out of our country!
What do you think you are looking at, huh?
Damn spics! We don't need you! Get out!
Keep marching. Keep marching, please.
- Get these sons of bitches off my land.
- Yes, sir.
We aren't going anywhere,
we have the right to be here.
Suit yourself.
Deputies, now, you're witnesses.
This horde invaded my property
and we are just defending ourselves.
A man has a duty to defend his property.
You are damn right he does.
Cesar, they will shoot.
You get rid of them!
Everybody move! Move back!
Back to the main road,
everybody move back now!
Move back! Move back! No, no, no!
(GUNSHOT)
Are you going to do something?
You hard of hearing?
The boss told you to clear out.
He's not my boss.
And our tax dollars pay
for this public road.
Tax dollars?
There's your tax dollars.
(COUGHING)
- (G ROANS)
- MAN: Hey, Gilbert!
(INDISTINCT)
Hey, that's enough now. Come on, that's
all. Let's go. Get on over here.
CESAR: Hello, you are late.
NEWSCASTER: Farm workers
in Delano, California
have begun an unprecedented strike
in the central valley.
Filipino and Mexican workers
have joined forces
to demand fair wages and better working
conditions for their members.
REPORTER: Would you say that most of
your workers are making a decent living?
FOREMAN: All I can say is that the men
have to be their judges of their own,
what they want,
because they have chosen this way of life
and, if they were not happy,
they wouldn't be here.
How much have you been getting
for a day's work?
Only two dollars.
- Two dollars a day?
- Yes.
- Are you sure it's not broken?
- CESAR: I'm sure.
(SIGHS)
Dad?
It's okay, Fernando.
Go back to sleep, please.
I said go back to sleep, Fernando,
you have school tomorrow.
Here. Put it on.
(CHUCKLES)
Does this help?
I told you five minutes ago
to sit down at the table.
Mmm.
To all the growers, their lawyers
and this garbage injunction.
At least they finally got Fred
to come down here.
This court ruling bans all mass picketing.
Mmm. And the best part,
they got a ban on saying
the word "Huelga" anywhere near the fields.
- GILBERT: "Huelga f?"
- "Huelga-"
Can you say "Strike"?
As long as you don't translate it.
You would think a bunch of lawyers
would have heard of the First Amendment.
It's a joke.
They'll get it thrown out on appeal.
Yeah, by the time the state court
hears the appeals,
the grapes will be picked,
the growers know that.
There's only one thing we can do.
We have to get people
to violate the injunction,
and make the Sheriff enforce it.
You mean get arrested.
Make them arrest us and fill up the jails?
And give the white press
exactly what they want? Hmm?
Rowdy Mexicans in jail.
Have you had your head in the dirt
this whole time?
Things are changing.
Okay, but who is gonna go?
I'll do it.
Once they get you in their jails,
they can figure out ways of keeping
you there a long time, Cesar.
So I'll do it.
Do what?
I'll get arrested.
(LAUGHING)
You can't get arrested.
What? Why not?
Well, who is going to
take care of the kids?
The kids are fine.
- They are big, they take care of themselves.
- No.
Cesar, you are the one who says
we can't ask our members
to do things we are not willing
to do ourselves.
I said no.
Dolores, what do you think?
I think it's a good idea.
I think it's a good idea, too.
Come, let's eat.
You know how it works,
they don't understand.
Strike!
Strike!
Mrs. Chavez,
we have a court order that forbids you
from saying the word "Huelga. "
Strike!
This is your first warning, Mrs. Chavez.
This is your second!
(REPEATING)
(REPEATING)
(ALL REPEATING)
- Good morning to you.
- Good morning, sir.
- Good morning, Grace.
- Good morning.
Call my wife and tell her
I'm not going to be able to make lunch.
Come on, let's go.
I need you to take the trucks across
the border into Mexico,
and I want y'all to bring me back
some illegals
who are willing to work
for an honest day's pay.
And I want you to bring them back here
by the truckload, you hear me.
'Cause we are gonna break
this goddamn strike.
You'll see what these sons of bitches do
when they see their cousins
out there working on 'em fields.
(HORN HONKING)
Everyone gather up.
Who's thirsty?
Here, have some cold water.
It's free...
I've been told that some union members
affiliated with the communist party
have been talking with you.
Making promises.
These promises are nothing but lies.
You could even end up in jail.
And for what?
What's wrong, Cruz?
Aren't you thirsty?
If any of you has a problem,
tell me about it.
We don't want any problems here.
- Jail was amazing?
- Yeah, it was.
I got to meet so many amazing people.
There was this woman, Irene,
she was so smart, and I'm gonna
put her on the Credit Union.
And also there was this man
who was laying next to me.
Laying next to you?
Yeah, I saw when he got arrested.
The cops were beating him,
and they were calling him names,
and they were trying to get him
to fight back and he wouldn't.
Do you plan on seeing him again?
Cesar, I don't know what
you are talking about.
Well, you know what? Maybe we can
make him part of the team, you know?
We are always looking for good men.
I mean amazing.
'Cause it was amazing, right?
- Cesar, don't be jealous.
- No.
I'm not jealous.
I'm just glad that you had
such a good time in jail.
(CAR HORN HONKING)
Cesar!
Cesar! Hey, Cesar!
It's Jerry Cohen, remember me?
- Who's that?
- He's a lawyer.
You know that man?
How much do you know about
what we are doing?
I've been analyzing your strategy,
and one thing is clear,
you have to stop these injunctions.
I mean they are a catch-22,
the bail alone is going to bankrupt you.
With all due respect,
I know you went to a fancy school,
that doesn't make you an expert.
Well, I also worked the California Rural
Legal Assistance.
- For how long?
- Two years.
Two years, huh? Why did you leave?
Um...
It's complicated.
That's what I heard.
You are hired.
Hired?
I want you full time, starting now.
I thought maybe I'd do some consulting?
No, as of now you are in charge
of the United Farm Workers' legal team.
- Who else is on the team?
- Just you.
Doesn't it take more than one person
to make a team?
Oh, you'll be doing more work
than one person.
Against one of the biggest
law firms in California.
And you'll be getting paid
five dollars a week.
Five dollars a week?
You'll be happy to know that
makes you the highest paid employee.
Also our lowest paid employee.
Everybody makes five dollars a week?
Hey! If you wanna make money,
go work for the growers.
(LAUGHS)
(PLAYING LIVELY MUSIC)
(HELEN SPEAKING)
We're here to help.
Don't be afraid.
(ALL SINGING)
United we will stand.
They will not defeat us.
United we will stand.
They will not defeat us.
This movement is for you, the people.
They will not defeat us.
Long live the strike!
Long live Cesar Chavez!
Son! Son!
They're not paying you enough!
Come join us!
Join the cause!
Son, they're not paying you enough.
Don't betray your people.
Hey, come join us!
Come!
Don't be afraid!
Come on, come on, come on!
Come!
Get closer!
(CLAMORING)
- Closer together!
- Run, get together!
Move back! Move back!
(ENGINE ROARING)
We are not leaving!
Don't move! Stay together.
(ENGINE STOPS)
(ENGINE STARTING)
CESAR: Pesticide! Helen!
Helen!
(PEOPLE COUGHING)
- it burns.
- I know.
(EXHALES)
I almost got it.
That was really scary, Cesar.
What if something happened to us?
What would happen to the kids?
DOLORES: People are starting to lose hope,
and I don't blame them.
They know the growers have broken
the strike with the illegal workers.
And the sweetheart deal with the teamsters.
We can't ask them to keep going when
they see people working in the fields.
We have to take the next step.
We are too weak.
We have no laws to protect us here.
With the boycott,
there are no laws to stop us.
This is the moment, Cesar.
This is what we came here to do.
CESAR: We just can't
boycott all the growers.
We need to start small, we need a face,
a brand, that's what we need to focus on.
And that face is Victorre Wines.
CESAR". Dolores Huerta will be recruiting
in the west counties,
and Gilbert Padilla
will be recruiting in the southern cities.
And the rest of the state we will
divide amongst each other.
Anybody that can travel, talk to Richard.
My brother knows how to travel.
To be successful,
we have to have an army of boycotters,
willing to do the hard work.
The bigger the army, the
bigger the success.
You start small, you get wins.
The army will get bigger.
The people to best recruit
are the students.
Civil rights groups, some church groups,
those are the best recruits.
Well, any kind of recruit
is the best kind of recruit for us.
(SCATTERED CHUCKLING)
So, we need to hit the streets
with aggressive leafleting.
- (INDISTINCT)
- And make so much noise
that they won't be able to ignore us.
Picket lines, in churches,
entertainment venues, colleges, factories.
Anywhere there's a large number of people.
That's where you need to go.
Once we got their attention,
we need to get on every radio show,
and every television show.
There's no bathrooms in the fields.
There's no minimum wage.
The best thing that you can do,
the way we can put pressure,
is to boycott.
You can help by boycotting Victorre Grapes.
Okay, thank you.
CESAR". And tell them personal stories.
Firsthand, from the people
that have suffered in the fields.
Because we are fighting
for basic human rights.
NEWSCASTER: The attention of national
legislators was focused on Delano
when the Senate Subcommittee
on migrant labor conducted hearings
in the Delano high school.
Headed by New Jersey's Harrison Williams.
It also included California's George
Murphy, and New York's Robert Kennedy.
DOLORES: Senator Kennedy
can be very supportive
if he thinks the cause
can make a difference.
So, when he comes, make sure you
walk with him so they can take pictures.
How are you, sir?
How are you? Thank you.
Hi, how are you?
Senator Kennedy, great to see you again.
I'd like to introduce Cesar Chavez.
- It's a pleasure...
- It's likewise.
DOLORES: Go, go, go.
You were supposed to walk with him.
Hi, John, how are you? Good to see you.
Don't believe everything you hear today.
Yeah, it looks like he is not even
talking to them either so...
KENNEDY: Do you write down the license
plate numbers of everyone in the city?
I'm glad he came,
but I think it's just for show.
I think you're wrong, Fred.
I hope so.
I also see complaints here
from Mr. Chavez that, uh,
pesticides have been sprayed
on some of his picketers.
I'm aware of no such incidents.
(CROWD MURMURING)
What about shots being fired
in their general direction?
We've looked into every one
of Mr. Chavez's complaints
and haven't found an ounce
of truth to any of it.
(CROWD PROTESTING)
Lie.
Is it true that you detained some
picketers as a preventive measure?
Your arrest record seems to confirm it.
If I have reason to believe that
there's going to be a riot started,
and someone tells me there's going
to be trouble unless I stop them,
it's my duty to stop them.
You just go out there and arrest them?
Absolutely.
Who told you they were going to riot?
The foremen.
Right out there in the fields.
The ones we were talking to,
said that if we didn't stop them,
they were going to cut their hearts out.
So, rather than let things get out of hand,
we just removed the cause.
This is the most interesting
concept, I think,
that you suddenly hear talk of
somebody who's gonna get out of order,
perhaps violate the law,
and so you go in and arrest
the intended victim of the crime,
and they haven't done anything wrong.
(CROWD CHEERING)
MURPHY: I want to thank Sheriff Smith
for his services to the citizens of Delano.
We'll now take an hour recess for lunch.
Excuse me, can I suggest...
I would just like to suggest that,
in the interim period of time,
in the luncheon period of time,
that the Sheriff
and the Kern County District Attorney,
read the Constitution
of the United States of America.
I guess I was wrong.
Hey! Fuck you!
BOY 1: We are going to
get you, little beaner.
BOY 2: Wetback!
(SCHOOL BELL RINGING)
BOY 1: We are going to kick your ass.
HELEN: You should talk to
Fernando before you go.
Hmm.
He's having trouble with those kids again.
Where is he?
He's at Richard's.
He's been spending a lot
of time there lately.
Maybe that's not such a good idea.
Maybe you should talk to him.
I'll talk to him when I get back.
Cesar, you know that boy
is as stubborn as you are.
Your clean socks are on the top shelf.
Take all of them.
It's a lot of socks.
It's a long walk.
Cesar.
You got a permit for this march?
It's not a march, Sheriff. It's a
pilgrimage all the way to Sacramento.
And our families are here
just to say goodbye.
Do you hear that?
They don't like working for a day's wage,
but they'll walk over 300 miles for free.
(OFFICERS LAUGHING)
Even pilgrims ain't allowed in the street
without a permit.
Fine, we'll use the sidewalk.
It's open to the public.
If we leave at 10 p.m.,
we can catch them in Modesto.
Yeah, I know Dad.
RICHARD: Fernando, what are you doing?
I'm not going with you guys.
We're going to see your dad
and from there we can go home.
I don't want to see my Dad.
He'll be happy to see you!
He won't even know I'm there.
He only cares about the Union.
Check this out.
Big article about the auto workers
standing down to show solidarity.
Hmm.
Front page?
Page six, but we are moving up.
And those longshore workers
are standing down too.
Rookie!
Mansi!
I saw everybody on the news.
I got tired of just sitting around,
watching a lot of TV, you know.
I got some donations from
a department store.
(GREETING)
I am glad you came.
I am glad you came.
Donations.
Boots.
They're brand new.
Yeah, about 150 miles too late.
ALL: Boycott Victorre!
MAN: I am Chief Executive Officer
of the United Church of Christ.
My name is Rabbi Tannenbaum.
I came here from New York City.
We believe the United Farm Workers
and their leader, Cesar Chavez, represent
the hope and aspirations
of a vast majority of farm workers.
I think every American has a stake to bring
about social change within the system,
because if nonviolent means fail,
this becomes a setback for
the entire democratic process.
(ALL SINGING)
In colors, in colors,
are the little birds
that come from outside.
In colors, in colors,
is the rainbow that we see shining.
And that is why I love
The great loves of many colors
(ALL CHANTING)
(CHEERING)
MAN: My union, the U.A.W.
and the Industrial Union Department
will pledge $5,000 a month to these workers
for as long as it takes to win their strike.
The average farm worker only lives to 49.
They say they won't
give you bathrooms in the fields
because Mexicans don't know
how to use them.
I'm Jackie Stringer.
We just drove down from Portland.
CESAR". That's a long drive.
I've been watching the news.
I saw pictures of the children
working in the fields...
We'd like to help in some way.
Well you can do this, don't buy
any more Victorre products.
No more Victorre wine at dinner.
- And then have your friends do the same.
- I will.
Excuse me, sir, can I help you?
You have to sit on your damn booze,
you hear me?
I don't care if you have
to sit on it for a year.
We need you to stay strong.
We need you to hold the line.
We're all counting on you. All of us.
Excuse us.
Strong? Stay strong?
This boycott is killing us!
Have you seen the headlines
they're getting?
Not just in San Francisco,
but in L.A. and San Diego
and Fresno and Sacramento.
They're pulling our products
all over the damn state!
That's costing us money, real money,
Mr. Bogdanovich.
You wanna come in here and explain that
to our shareholders?
You wanna reimburse us those losses
so our stock price doesn't dip?
Can we sit?
NEWSCASTER: A 340 mile pilgrimage
started in Delano by 67 strikers,
concluded today on the steps
of the State Capitol in Sacramento,
where more than 10,000 supporters
welcomed Cesar Chavez and his procession.
The march has strengthened the boycott
and efforts by the strikers
to put pressure on the
label Victorre Wines.
ALL: (CHANTING) Huelga! Huelga!
Cesar!
Cesar!
There's a guy on the phone,
he says he's from Victorre.
And he wants to negotiate.
(SIGHS)
He's called three times.
Get Jerry up here!
Okay!
Fine, you've got your deal,
but if we're gonna pay top dollar,
we expect top dollar work.
That means no one, and I mean no one, is
gonna cut unripe grapes to pad their lugs.
Or stick them full of god damn dirt clods.
Objection.
Objection? What do you mean?
Well, it's a personal objection.
You may not be aware but these people
have been doing this for a very long time.
They don't need you to tell them
how to pick a grape.
Well, you tell them that
when they're packing my grapes...
(URINATING)
Well that was the most eloquent piss
I've ever heard.
NEWSCASTER: in California,
actor Ronald Reagan and Mrs. Reagan arrive
to cast their votes in the state's
primary election.
He's the Republican nominee for governor.
(CLATTERING)
Helen!
HELEN: Leave him alone!
- BOY 1: Hey, you wetback.
- BOY 2: Beaner, beaner, boy.
Get out of here!
Get the hell out of here!
What are you doing?
I'm standing up for my son.
Because somebody has to.
(DOOR CLOSES)
So what's your plan?
You can't stay at your
grandparents' house forever.
Don't act like all of a sudden
you are interested in what I'm doing.
Of course I'm interested.
You're my son.
Don't worry. I'll be fine.
Can you rethink this?
(ENGINE STARTING)
HELEN: Fernando is going to be fine
with your parents.
And I'm sure he'll be back soon.
It's going to be fine.
Aren't you going to eat something?
(SNIFFLES)
You want some carrots or broccoli
that your grandpa grows?
You still hungry? Carrot?
I just got word.
Chavez is going to target us next.
Zucchini.
Dad? What should we do?
I don't know, John.
I'm not the one who went to college.
I'm not the one with the Master's Degree.
I'm only the one
who invested a lot of money
(INHALES DEEPLY) in his only son,
hoping that one day, he would be able
to answer one simple question.
How do I not drive my father's business
into the fucking ground?
I'll, um, talk to the Sheriff.
You're a big man.
Broccoli.
Hmm?
It's time for his nap, Sir.
No, no. You can leave him. He is fine.
(BABY BABBLING)
Yes, sir.
Maria, you know about this Chavez, no?
Do you really think he's one of you?
Yes, sir.
Hmm.
Well, I'm one of you too.
I came from Croatia with nothing.
Everything I got, I built with my own
hands, my own labor, and my own sweat.
I don't see why anyone should be able
to take that away from me.
So now you want me to help you?
No, no. It's very simple.
I want you to do your job.
Patience.
Is that what you told Victorre?
Because this time we actually
need you to do something.
You see, after the senate hearings,
I can't do nothing about nothing.
Unless they break the law.
Did you hear what I just said?
They are targeting my family now.
Do you understand?
Or do you need my father
to repeat it to you, hmm?
I got too much heat on me.
I can turn a blind eye,
but that's as far as I can go on this.
You do that.
Sit on your ass.
(ALL SHOUTING)
(GLASS SHATTERING)
Hey! You okay?
Yes, I'm okay.
Okay, don't move.
(ALL CLAMORING)
Stop it! That's enough!
I said stop! Leave him alone!
You don't want to do this!
You don't wanna hurt this man!
ELI: What are you doing, Cesar?
Leave him alone.
This son of a bitch needs to pay
right here, right now.
No, no, no.
The next person who lays a hand on him
is out of the Union!
He's gone!
You don't want to do this!
Not like this!
This is not the way to do things.
Get that piece of shit out of here.
What did you say?
Eli! Come on!
- What?
- Stop it!
I said get that piece of shit
out of here and throw him in the trash.
Do you need
someone to translate that for you?
(GRUNTING)
Stop! You're out of the Union!
You're out of the Union! You hear me?
You are out! Go! Get out!
CESAR". We have completely lost our way.
How can we condemn
police brutalities in the inner cities,
yet advocate violence
out here in the fields?
How can we criticize the carnage
in Vietnam, yet cry for blood here at home?
This isn't about Vietnam,
this is about Delano,
this is about being a man,
this is about enough is enough!
(APPLAUSE)
No, no, no.
Those of you running around,
destroying things,
giving into your hatred
and your chicken shit macho ideals
are seriously sabotaging
the efforts of La Causa,
and I will not stand for it!
I failed you.
I failed you as a leader.
And I have something to tell you.
Three days ago I stopped eating.
I will continue to fast until everyone,
and I mean everyone,
in our beautiful movement
makes a pledge recommitting themselves
to nonviolence.
'Cause we move forward together,
or not at all.
So that's your big solution?
Starvin' yourself?
That helps them more than us!
GILBERT: Settle down.
Yes or no? Yes or no?
- CROWD: Yes!
- CROWD: No!
Settle down. Come on. Please sit down.
The meeting is not over.
RICHARD: You okay?
I had a bad dream.
Dreamin' about food again?
Mmm-mmm.
No. The ranch...
The horses were screaming.
Like, when the bulldozer came.
I couldn't move my legs
and everyone left me behind.
I haven't thought about that
bulldozer in years.
What I remember most
was that feeling,
that feeling of
impotence.
When that bulldozer knocked over the farm.
Dad couldn't look me in the eye.
That look on his face...
The shame behind his eyes...
It never left him.
It's the first time I saw the old man cry.
That's what I'm scared of, Rookie.
To go back and face my family,
after everything that
I've put them through,
and tell them that it
was all for nothing...
So this is how you face them?
Mansi, listen,
you know I've been with you.
Through thick and through thin.
But we need a leader not a martyr.
I need to understand what you're doing.
I've lost my way...
We all lost our way.
(MUMBLING)
The violence, the anger...
I'm angry too!
I'm angry that I live in a world
where a man who picks your food
can't feed his family.
I used to think
the fight was with the growers.
It's with ourselves.
We need to stop acting like victims.
I'm not going to stop,
I'm going to see it all the way through.
Because if we lose...
I won't be able
to look at my family in the eye.
What if you die, Mansi?
Who are we going to look to then?
Get up there, it's a great shot.
WOMAN ON SPEAKER: If you are
just arriving, please,
head to the registration table to check in
and sign our pledge of non-violence.
(WOMAN REPEATING ANNOUNCEMENT)
(INDISTINCT)
(BREATHING DEEPLY)
(PRIEST SPEAKING)
Dear brothers and sisters.
As we prepare to celebrate
the mystery of Christ's love,
let us acknowledge our sins.
I confess to almighty God
and to you, my brothers and sisters,
that I have sinned through my own fault
in my thoughts and in my words,
in what I have done and have failed to do.
Through my fault, through my fault
through my most grievous fault.
It's okay. It's okay, Cesar.
REAGAN: There is no
strike in the vineyards.
FOREMAN: Our workers have
sought to stay with us,
and continue work without any interest
in this outside organization.
They don't belong here
and I wish they would all go back
to where they came from.
REAGAN: The Chavez group are
seeking to force the growers
to recognize their group
as the bargaining agent.
(MAN SHOUTING)
WOMAN". And they've interfered
with our daily workers.
REAGAN: And the only contracts that
were signed between Mr. Chavez's union
and a few wineries that signed up
under the coercion of his threats...
- (GLASS SHATTERING)
- (GROANS)
HELEN". What if something happens to us?
I'm standing up for my son!
What would happen to the kids?
SHERIFF SMITH: Mr. Chavez!
(GLASS SHATTERS)
They've been coming in bigger numbers
ever since Chavez quit eating.
How long can a man go without food?
It depends on the man, John.
Everything depends on the man.
Maybe we let, uh, Chavez
starve himself to death,
then we won't have to do anything.
Unfortunately, I don't think
he is the suicidal type.
FERNANDO: Ma! I'm gonna leave
some more stuff here.
Mostly clothes I don't wear anymore.
Mom, what's wrong?
Does he know what he's doing to you?
No. He doesn't.
Please go see your father before you leave.
How is he?
He's not good.
Thank you. My brother appreciates it.
- Hi.
- Hi Cruz, how're you doing?
I brought my cousins to sign the pledge,
they just crossed the border.
Well done, have them sign.
Look.
I brought Cesar some food.
Please tell him to eat something
and stop being stubborn.
- You wanna lie down?
- No.
Come on. I'll fix your pillow for you.
No, no. I'm okay.
I'm going to go home now.
Do you need anything?
Did Fernando come?
No.
(KNOCKING ON DOOR)
(PRIEST SPEAKING)
And he took bread in his hands
blessed it
and gave it to his disciples and said
"Take this all of you, and eat it"
"this is my body
which will be given up for you."
- The body of Christ.
- Amen.
(MOUTHING) Amen.
(ALL CLAPPING)
I come as an American citizen
to honor him for what he has done.
Not just for you, not just for the state.
But for all of the United
States of America.
I come here out of respect
for one of the heroic figures of our time,
Cesar Chavez!
(ALL CHEERING)
MAN ON "N: The consumer
has a tremendous interest
and, I think, should support the
farm worker and support the farmer.
And the farm workers are
in that field, in that ranch,
they're working, they're not on strike.
REPORTER: Meanwhile, Cesar Chavez has
organized his efforts to employ a new tactic,
one that would have a national effect.
CESAR: One of the biggest facts is that
the American public won't stand
for injustice as long as they know.
And we are fighting for legitimate wages
in a legitimate way.
One of the biggest weapons
we have is the boycott.
Not only is it an economic weapon
but it's also a non-violent weapon.
REPORTER: Picket lines
have been put around...
Prick.
Supermarkets in 23 major cities.
Most supermarkets in the country
still stock grapes.
But a significant number of shoppers,
mostly housewives,
are not buying the grapes.
They are observing the boycott.
That's a report from Delano, California.
This is Charles Walker...
(INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS)
We know that your organization supported
us in the picket lines in Pittsburgh,
and we were wondering if you could
organize another team of people again
this coming week.
What city are you in?
Montreal?
Wisconsin is next, okay?
Okay, I'll tell everyone.
Thank you, bye.
(SIGHS)
Last report estimates that we've cost them
$17 million to date!
I wish they'd paid that in fair wages.
What is your view
of the strike of the grape industry?
The grape boycott...
Well, I've classified that
in the past in a number of public occasions
as immoral. I think it is.
GILMORE: Get me John on the phone!
WOMAN: Yes, sir.
(LAUGHS)
(PHONE RINGS)
Did you see it?
Man of the year!
I thought they were going to make
him Pope.
I know... It's all right.
Well, let's get together on Sunday.
GILMORE: I saw her last week.
She told me and I forgot.
(LAUGHS)
But she looks great. She looks great.
- Yes, she does.
- (CLINKING GLASS)
BOGDANOVICH JUNIOR: Gentlemen.
Look,
I say it's time for the families to
put their differences aside
and speak together with one voice.
I agree.
Let's sit down with these bastards
and settle this thing once and for all.
Jack, are you serious?
You want to sit down with these characters?
We can't hang on much longer.
This boycott is bleeding us to death.
If we sit down with them it won't
be a boycott, it will be an insurrection.
We still gotta negotiate.
We don't have to negotiate,
we have to dictate terms.
Look,
I hate dealing with these dirty foreigners,
but we can't keep
putting on fake labels forever.
I'm a dirty foreigner, Jack.
You know what I mean.
I'm not the only one who feels like this.
You're not? Well, who else feels that way?
Jack's got a point.
It's time for us to cut our losses
and negotiate.
You don't negotiate with children.
You don't give children
every piece of candy in the store.
With children, you set the rules
and you make sure they obey them.
CESAR: How you been?
FERNANDO: I'm good. I broke 70.
You know, when the Chinese
came to America to build the rail roads,
you know what
they demanded of their overseers?
No.
Food. Good food.
And enough time to enjoy it.
And if the owners skimped on that,
they wouldn't lift a finger.
Give the Chinese a good meal every day
and they could
build the infrastructure of a continent.
Their meal is what gave
their lives dignity.
And to them, dignity was
more important than money.
That's nice, huh?
You have this annoying habit
of turning everything into a lesson.
I just like Chinese food.
How you doing?
I told you. I'm good.
With golf?
What's wrong with golf?
You are becoming a real American.
Golf is from Scotland.
(MUSIC PLAYING ON RADIO)
NEWSCASTER 1: We interrupt to bring
you this bulletin from Los Angeles.
New York Senator Robert Kennedy
has been shot in the head,
minutes ago as he left the platform
from which he made his victory statement
in Los Angeles.
The detailed report
which we did receive initially
pictured Kennedy
on the floor of the hotel kitchen.
Blood streaming from his face,
his eyes open but unseeing.
He is on his way,
or perhaps has already arrived
at an unnamed hospital in Los Angeles.
The moment further word is received
we will pass it along to you immediately.
NEWSCASTER 2: The final act in the
stunning tragedy of Robert Francis Kennedy
began this morning
with a touching ceremony
in St. Patrick's Cathedral
here in New York City.
The late senator was then
transported to his final resting place,
near his brother the late President
at Arlington National Cemetery.
NIXON: I, Richard Milhous Nixon,
do solemnly swear...
(ALL SHOUTING)
Everyone, stop working for a minute.
Come, join the strike.
Cesar Chavez wants to defend you!
That I will faithfully execute the
office of President of the United States...
And will to the best of my ability...
(ALL CLAMORING)
Preserve, protect and defend...
The Constitution of the United States...
(ALL SCREAMING)
So help me God.
(ALL SCREAMING)
Slow down!
Slow down! Slow down!
- Call an ambulance!
- Juan! Juan!
Help! Help!
BOGDANOVICH SENIOR: We thank you
for all that you are doing for us.
We very much appreciate it.
Yes, sir.
Well, you're someone
who understands business
and you're a Californian,
we're all Californians here...
Yes, sir.
I'll do my best.
And thank you, thank you so much.
Take care, bye.
Nixon has promised
to sell our grapes in Europe.
And whatever's leftover
he'll have the Department of Defense
buy and feed to our soldiers.
(KEYS JINGLING)
RICHARD: They're getting you
out in five days,
but I'm not sure about the others.
It's all lies.
They're saying we provoked them.
That the strike is not legal, they are
painting us to look like criminals.
And ever since they dumped the grapes
in Europe, their sales have gone up there.
By 140%.
We're not gonna survive Nixon.
Then we have to go over there.
To Europe?
If they're running, we have to catch them.
We can barely keep things together here,
Mansi.
I know.
BOGDANOVICH SENIOR: I never thought
I'd be saying this in my life.
To Richard Milhous Nixon!
ALL: To Nixon!
(SHIP HORN BLARING)
Focus on human law,
since it actually exists over in Europe.
The growers have completely
subverted the system here,
but Europe still defends workers' rights.
- (PHONE RINGING) - I hear they
get one month vacations there.
You might want to mention that
Vietnam is basically awash
in Bogdanovich's grapes and napalm.
I heard the food is terrible over there.
I don't care how bad the food is,
you're not starting a fast, Cesar.
Where is my coat?
CESAR". Hey, Helen.
You should see this place.
How are the kids?
And Fernando?
Okay.
I'll see you in a couple of days.
CONDUCTOR: Fares please.
Yes, sir.
- CESAR: Albert.
- 2p please.
- WOMAN: Mr. Chavez?
- Yes.
Lovely to meet you.
- Nice to meet you.
- Welcome.
RADIO HOST: We're here with Cesar Chavez,
the civil rights activist,
who has caused quite a stir in America
from his ongoing boycott
that has meant millions of Americans
have stopped eating table grapes.
Does that work for you, Mr. Chavez?
Thank you.
CESAR: We are making a plea
of common sense, to an industry
that refuses to recognize
the basic human rights of its workers.
RADIO HOST: Besides this boycott,
your movement has marched and striked
and you yourself have done a 25 day fast.
Why has it gone this far?
CESAR: Well, despite the success we had
against the growers in California,
they still refuse
to sit down and negotiate with us.
And it's not
a question of economics anymore.
It's more a stubbornness.
They want to show that
they're strong and not weak.
RADIO HOST: So they would
rather export the grapes
than sit down and negotiate with you?
They'd rather sell their grapes to London,
or Stockholm
and think that that will erase all
the indignities that people have suffered.
And what kind of support have you
received here in Great Britain?
Here in Britain, we have the Transport and
General Workers Union support,
(HORNS HONKING)
and they have endorsed our boycott.
The dock loaders refuse to unload grapes.
What are you saying to me now?
Wait a minute! We had a deal!
Which is a great endorsement
of our boycott.
We're optimistic to have
similar support from other countries.
Diverse religious groups throughout the
continent have shown their support.
Even the Pope has agreed to meet us.
I've got them grapes
halfway through the Atlantic.
Hello?
So, what are you hoping to achieve?
CESAR: Well, it's never been
about the grapes.
It's always been about the people.
The poorest of the poor, the marginalized.
The ones who have been ignored.
(PEOPLE CHANTING)
(TRUCK HONKING)
There would be no food on the table
without these people.
And these people have
names, faces, families.
And I guess what we want to accomplish
is to give these people a voice.
RADIO HOST: But will this be enough,
considering the amount of resistance?
Once social change begins,
it can't be reversed.
You can't uneducate someone
who has learned how to read.
You can't humiliate someone
who has pride.
You can't oppress someone
who is not afraid anymore.
We have seen the future
and the future is ours.
Ready?
(INAUDIBLE)
(PHONE RINGS)
Don't answer it!
I'm right here.
Don't take three hours.
I have to drop this off.
(PANTING)
What's wrong?
They want to sign.
Who?
All of them. All the growers want to sign.
(APPLAUSE)
It's an interesting day
you choose to be late.
Come on, they are waiting inside.
(QUIETLY) You have to admit,
this old Croat put up a hell of a fight.
Yeah, I can do that, as long as you can
admit this little Mexican kicked your ass.
(ALL CHEERING)
CESAR: Brothers and sisters of the fields,
all around us were those
who said it could never be done.
People said that
the growers were too powerful,
the police would be against us...
And the courts would beat us down,
and that sooner or later
we would fall back into the poverty
and despair of our forefathers.
But we didn't!
We didn't
because our common suffering
and love for each other kept us together.
Five years we were on strike!
It kept us sacrificing and fighting
for a better tomorrow,
a better tomorrow that we all dream about
as we work among these beautiful vines.
And when millions and millions of
Americans stopped doing one thing,
eating grapes,
we won the strike!
- We won!
- (ALL CHEERING)
Yes, we can!
CESAR: I know there is no way
to justify the things that I've done...
Or that I've not done for you.
It saddens me to think that
we never got a chance
to go fishing together
or catch a baseball game
or even go watch a movie.
There's no way to turn back the clock
and to make up for lost time.
But I want you to know that
your mother and I
miss you very much, Fernando.
It seems so ironic to think that,
because I've tried to do things that
my father could never do for us,
I'm now so distant from you.
Please know that
the day you came into this world
was also the day that I
received the clarity
that I so desperately needed.
You and your brothers and sisters
are the purpose for my struggle.
Everything I do is for you.
And I hope you remember that.
I also hope that one day
you can be as proud of me as I am of you.
REAL CESAR: But I want
more than anything else,
I would like to see the poor
take a very direct part in shaping society.
And let them make the decisions.
And in our case, if the poor are not
involved, then change will never come.