Published by United Farm Workers June 1986

PESTICIDES

Sulfur is used as a pesticide tokill fungus and insects on plants. Ithas a twenty-four hour restriction.This means that workers are not sup­posed to be in the fields for at leasttwenty-four hours after the chemicalhas been sprayed. Wilder should havebeen aware of both the re-entryrestriction and the presence of workers.He has been a crop duster for ten years.

After the spraying, one of theworkers went to the site where thehelicopter had landed and took the labelthat described the pesticide with whichshe and the others had been sprayed.The label reads in part: "Do not applythis product in such a manner as to

Maxine Swindlehurst, one of the spraying victims, believes she was intentionally

poisoned.

One day, not too long ago, a cropduster named Stephen T. Wilder flew ahelicopter loaded with sulfur over thefields of Napa Valley Vineyards inNapa, California.

There were farm workers in manyof the fields but Wilder only seemedinterested in six pro-union workers.All six were women. Four of thesewomen were working when Wilderflew toward them. He sprayed thewomen five and six times, each timedousing them with sulfur. Wilder thenskipped several fields and approachedan area where two other women wereworking. He sprayed both of thesewomen and flew off.

Grape Workers Believe TheyWere Deliberately Poisoned

AIHc!aII Ed!tpnI.Roberto de Ia CruzRev. Chris HartmireArturo Rodriguez

WlIIIII;Fr. Ken IrrgengKirnbeIty K Lawson

Volume 3, Number 5

Food and JusticeJune 1986

NI1IpnII RUG''"'" Bgtrd­President:Cesar Chavez5e<:retary-Treasurer:Peter VelescoFIISI VICe-President:DoIcns Huerta5econd VICe-President:FrankOrlizThird Vlc&-PresIdent:Davld Martinez

IIIIDIIIm&Arturo RodriguezArturo MendozaOscar MondragonBenMeddock

fIhotpcatMtwr;

Cover picture: Victims of pesticidepoisoning at Napa Valley Vineyards.Shown are Petra Alvarez. MarisValdez. Maria Amaya. Maria GaJ!ygos,Angela Garcia and MaxineSwindlehursl

fIroduc!kIn D1!'l1Ct!lr;Paul Chavez

VICIOr Aleman

Magazine of the United FarmWorkers of America, AFL-eIOLa Paz, Keene, CA 93570

@)~11

FOOD AND JUSTICE (ISSN 0885­0704) is published monlhly for $5 peryear by the United Farm Worlcers of"'-ica. AFl-eIO. Old HIghway 58,La Paz. CaIlfomia 93570. AppIicaIionto mail at second-class postage ral8sis pending at Keene. ClIIIIomia.POSTMASTER: Send addresschanges to FOOD AND JUSTICE,P.O. 62, La Paz, California 93570.

EDITORIAL

California table grapes are now in yourlocal supennarket. We need your help in gettingthem out of the stores -- for our sake, but also foryours. As you can see from the articles in thisissue, the growers are recklessly poisoning farmworkers on an almost daily basis. And they won'teven talk about testing for pesticide residuesthat are hidden deep inside the grapes where washingcannot reach.

You can help get these tainted grapes out ofthe stores by talking to your local store manager.Tell him/her about the poisoning of workers andthe pesticide residues inside the grapes. Demand thathe/she remove the table grapes from the shelves.Do it every week until your pressure has an impact.

If your manager says the grapes are pesticide­free, insist that he put up above the grape display afonnal statement to that effect. If he agrees, let usknow so that we can demand a residue test of thegrapes.

You are our Court of Last Resort, the courtthat has always insisted on justice for farm workers.Now we can work together to protect farm workersand consumers from the plague of pesticides onour food. If we join hands as a family, we can banthe deadliest poisons from the fields.

Please see your supennarket manager today andlet me know about the results.Y

2 3

geted. Maxine has worked for NapaValley Vineyards for over ten years. "Itdidn't make any sense because he(Wilder) sprayed just where I worked.When I was sprayed I was sitting inone of the rows so I thought he mustnot have seen me. I covered my nose.But then I saw it (the helicopter)coming back."

Maxine does not believe thespraying could have been an accitl~fY[

"If he's qualified to fly that helicopter,he should be qualified to know not tospray people," she said. "There werefields with other workers, and theywere not sprayed. For some reason thecompany just wants to get rid of us."

The reason the company wants toget rid of the workers is probably dueto their loyalty to the UFW and theirdetermination to be protected. Their

resolution was demonstrated a weekafter the spraying when the workersplaced large union flags at the end ofthe rows of grape vines in the fieldswhere they work.

No one in the company willadmit to ordering the spraying. Theworkers believe that Robert Egelhoffor Scott Wharton, two company man­agers who have a reputation among theworkers for harassment, may be respon­sible. Petra recalled that after she wassprayed she went to the companyoffice. She reported the incident toWharton, and Wharton's response was"Good." Petra added, "Egelhoff was notthere, and he is the one who is sup­posed to tell the guy who wasspraying what field to spray." Egel­hoff could not be reached for comment.

After the spraying, the women

Stephen Wilder, owner and sole pilot of North Coas Helicopters, repeatedly sprayed sixwomen farm workers last month.

directly or through drift exposeworkers or other persons."

Many of the workers believe thatWilder was ordered to spray them by aNapa Valley Vineyard official. thewomen who were sprayed -- PetraAlvarez, Maria Valdez, Maria Amaya,Maria Gallygos, Angela Garcia andMaxine Swindlehurst are allmembers of the United Farm Workers.

Petra is the union representativeand a member of the committee whichhas been trying to negotiate a contractwith Napa Valley Vineyards for thepast five months. Maria Valdez is thepresident of the negotiating com­mittee, and Maria Amaya is thesecretary.

Petra has worked for the companyfor thirteen years. She believes shewas singled out by Wilder and thecompany. "The guy who sprayed usknew what he was doing," Petra said.

4

"He should have his license takenaway."

She added, "I was singled outbecause I am a union representative,and they (company officials) do notlike people who speak up for theirrights. They want to make us giveup."

Maria Valdez shares Petra'sconviction. "It's because we are mem­bers of the committee. The companyis putting pressure on us right now,"she said. Maria is also convinced thatthe crop duster intentionally sprayedher and the others. Maria was sprayedsix times with the pesticide. She said,"We were drenched with the yellowchemical. (The crop duster) was flyingso low, so it would have been im­possible for him not to see us. He sawus, and he did it on purpose."

Maxine, another spraying victim,also believes she was deliberately tar-

Instead of investigating the spraying the day after it happened or on company time, officialDebbie Swanson questions workers a week later during their lunch hour.

5

Helicopters owned by Wilder are used for crop dusting in Napa Valley.

tree fruit division, the company hasoffered "unacceptable proposals."These proposals call for drasticallyreduced wages, weakened seniority pol­icies and a reduction in the company'sresponsibility to recognize the union.

Still the workers are fighting fordecent wages and working conditions."Some people don't think much offarm workers," Maxine explained. "ButI take pride in my work because I sup­port my kids with my wages. I'm noton welfare. And we have to fight for al;:ontract now."

The pilot who sprayed the work­ers does not have the same economicconcerns. He earned $60,000 last yearfor 350 hours of flying time. "You canmake some real big bucks if you are inthe right place at the right time in theright job," Wilder said. Still, he main­tains that money is not his soleincentive. He said, "Pilots are like cow­boys. They do it because they love it."

How much Wilder was paid tospray the workers at Napa Valley Vine­yards is not known.~

Workers of Napa Valley Vineyards are ioyal to the union and detennined to win a faircontract.

workers were given water in the fields.The cups given to the workers to drinkout of smelled of gasoline. Petra toldEgelhoff this, but he said he did notsmell anything.

Another episode involves theplacement of bathrooms for workers inthe fields. Bathrooms are supposed tobe placed fairly close to the workers.After the spraying, Maxine felt ill.She told Egelhoff this and then drove"a few miles" before she found abathroom. When she returned to thefield she was suspended for three days.

Being sprayed repeatedly with thepesticide has not shaken the workers'resolution to attain a fair contract. TheUFW has represented the workers atNapa Valley Vineyards since 1972.The last contract expired in December,1985. Because of the company offi­cials' behavior during negotiatingsessions, the UFW has filed chargesagainst the company for bargaining inbad faith.

According to Humberto Gomez,crop manager of the union's grape and

"The questionnaire is just topressure people," Petra said. "They arehoping we'll forget about thespraying."

When Swanson noticed that aunion reporter was taping her inter­view with one of the workers, shequickly moved herself and the workerout of range of the tape recorder.

Roy Harris, a manager andcompany negotiator, also implied thatthe workers are lying about theincident. "We're still in the process ofinvestigating," he said. "We're having

trouble getting the people involved totalk candidly about it." Harris alsoconfirmed that Wilder is the onlyperson hired by Napa Valley Vineyardsto spray the fields, implying that itcould have been no one but Wilderwho sprayed the women workers.

When Harris was asked to elab­orate on the spraying episode herefused to comment.

The spraying incident is not theonly mistreatment the workers havesuffered though it is the most blatant.Petra remembers a recent day when the

became sick. Maxine's eyes ached fordays from the chemical which had beensprayed in her face. The other womensuffered from nausea, headaches anddizziness.

Still, the company did notrespond to the episode until a fullweek after it occurred. It is probablynot a coincidence that the companydecided to investigate the spraying thesame day that they were notified thatreporters from the UFW would beentering the vineyards to interview thevictims. "Why didn't they ask me

alxmt it the day after it happened?"Maxine asked.

The day that union reportersarrived there were two company offi­cials questioning the workers. DebbieSwanson and Frank Villanova askedthe workers questions from a formprepared by the company. Swansontold the workers, "I just want anhonest opinion about what happened."Petra told Swanson that the workershave been telling the truth all along.She said she does not need to changeher story to make it "honest."

6 7

Cesar Chavez addresses thousands of students and supporters at UCLA's Cinco de Mayofestivities.

Grape Boycott Gains More SupportKansas City Endorses

THE WRATH OF GRAPES FILM

GIVE ME ANEVENING OFYOUR LIFE

ANDTOGETHER WECAN BRING ADAY OF HOPE

"Everything's up to date inKansas City" -- especially the latest onthe grape boycott. Fann labor leaderCesar Chavez made sure of that duringa three-day visit in May.

Opening a jam-packed schedule ofmeetings, speeches and interviews wasa breakfast meeting with officials ofthe Greater Kansas City Labor Coun­cil, headed by Ed Drake, president, andHarry Spring, secretary-treasurer. "Wehave stood side by side with farmworkers in their struggle for many

8

years, and we always will," Drake toldChavez. "We are proud to endorse yournew table grape boycott."

At a press conference followingthe breakfast meeting, Kansas City(MO) Mayor Richard Berkley issued aproclamation of welcome to Chavez.Leaders of various organizations signedan enlarged "Wrath of Grapes" pledgecard. Endorsing the boycott wereBishop John B. Sullivan of theDiocese of Kansas City; Bill Waris,representing the Jackson County Legi-

TOPESTICIDE

VICTIMS

Er-] Cesar Chavez

NOW IS THE TIME FOR US ALL TO STAND ASA FAMILY AND DEMAND A RESPONSE IN

THE NAME OF DECENCY!

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Add your voice to our Demands of Decency as we call for:

• A ban on dangerous pesticides

• A joint OFW-Grape Grower residue testing program of tablegrapes

• Free and 'fair elections for farm workers

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La Paz, Keene, CA 93570

Yours in Friendship,

/~~<t:~

Cesar ChavezPresidentUnited Farm Workers of America

Dear Friend,

Now I am reaching out to you for help, becauseconsumers and farm workers must stand togetheras one family if we are to be heard.

I am writing to you about our new film, TheWrath of Grapes. I believe that once you've seen it,you'll want to show it to your friends.

The new film depicts the plight of California farmworkers exposed to deadly pesticides throughstories of themselves and their children.

You will see a moving, sad and frightening film ofpesticide victims afflicted with cancer.

You will be brought to your feet with anger andconcern over the birth defects.

No matter who you are ..• it's your health that isendangered by the same residues that poison farmworkers and their families.

Please contact me soon by sending in theenclosed tear-off card. And don't forget ­BOYCOTT TABLE GRAPES!

TOO MUCH IS AT STAKE

This is a battle that none of us can afford to losebecause it is a fight for the future of America. It is afight we can win with commitment and money. And itis a fight everyone can join.

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slature (county supervisors); membersof the Kansas City (MO) City Coun­

~cil; and representatives of the LaborCouncil for Latin American Advance­ment.

The next day, after the citycouncil of Kansas City, Kansas also­officially endorsed the grape boycott,Mayor Jack Reardon issued aproclamation of welcome honoringChavez at the opening of the HispanicLeadership Conference. Chavez, thekeynote speaker, outlined the reasonsfor renewing the table grape boycott:

"The same forces that keptCalifornia farm workers enslaved for100 years are again thriving under thepresent Deukmejian Administration.The farm labor law of 1975 is inshambles, free and fair elections areimpossible, growers ignore therequirement to bargain in good faith,

and weak and poorly enforced pesticideregulations threaten farm workers andconsumers."

After his speech, Chavez intro­duced a new UFW boycott filmentitled "The Wrath of Grapes_" Itfocuses on the pesticide plague endan­gering farm workers, people living intowns surrounded by heavily poisonedagricultural fields, and consumers whoingest pesticide residues on grapes andother produce. The film is narrated byactor Mike Farrell. .

New Mexico Gov. Toney Anaya,addressing the same conference in theafternoon, pledged his support of thegrape boycott.

UCLAReturning to California, Chavez

received an enthusiastic reception atthe University of California (LosAngeles) during a celebration of Cincode Mayo (Fifth of May), a nationalholiday in Mexico and a day of culturalpride for Chicanos. The university­wide program was under thesponsorship of M.E.Ch.A., a Chicanostudent organization.

Chavezreminded UCLA students-­as well as community members alsoinvited to the celebration -- that theyare all descendants of immigrants whoat one time or other needed help tosurvive and succeed. "No one wants tolive in poverty or without humandignity and freedom," he said. "Farmworkers are just like everyone else.They simply seek their rights ashumans. And when those rights aredenied, they use whatever nonviolentmeans are needed to win them. That'swhat our table grape boycott is allabout. We need your help to convincegrowers and Gov. Deukmejian thatthey can't rob farm workers of theirrights. Decent people like you won'tlet them!",¥

9

The problems with the fruitbegan April 27. At that time, twoworkers reported chemical bumsaround their necks. An official fromthe company called Tulare CountyAgricultural Commissioner, ClydeChurchill, to report the cases. Church­ill's response was to tell the growersto call again if there were any newcases. In the following weeks, hun­dreds of additional workers cameforward with the same injuries.

Churchill was asked if it isstandard procedure to deputize growersto perform the agricultural depart­ment's duties. "If some violation hasbeen done or if it's a life and death

Victims of pesticide poisoning gather in front of LoBue Bros. in Lindsay, California. Morethan 300 workers of LoBue suffered from chemical bums.

PESTICIDES

LoBue Brothers, Inc. of Lindsay,California recently harvested a crop oforanges and sent them to be preparedfor sale in the nation's markets. Thisfruit was treated with Omite CR, apesticide used to kill mites. This samepesticide poisoned over 300 farm work­ers who picked the oranges. "LoBueBrothers is shipping the contaminatedfruit to the unsuspecting Americanconsumer," Cesar Chavez, UnitedFarm Workers president, said of thecompany's act.

At a demonstration held in frontof the LoBue Bros. plant on May IS,Chavez demanded that the orangesproduced by the company be recalled.

Poisoned Fruit Should BeRecalled

No charges were flled againstHatashita, and Azuma was cited for sixviolations of pesticide safety regula­tions requiring workers to be kept outof a field 24 hours after it has beensprayed with a Category I (highlytoxic) pesticide. If convicted, Azumawould face only a maximum sentenceof $1,000 and six months in jail foreach violation.

Minnie Ybarra, director of thefarm worker service center who caredfor the poverty-stricken Chabolla fam­ily after Juan's death, was incensedover the charges. "A young farmworker is dead, his wife Soledad andtheir four little children are left inpoverty, and the D.A. calls it a mis­demeanor," she said.

"Since farm workers are nothingmore than animals to most growers, Idon't know why Hatashita just didn'tput a bullet in Juan's head to put himout of his misery. Dragging himacross the border half dead and halfalive wasn't a bit more compassion­ate." Y

Huerta Leads Protest of MisdemeanorCharges in Farm Worker Death

"This is just another case of agrower and pesticide dealer practicallygetting away with murder," saidDolores Huerta, first vice-president ofthe United Farm Workers of America,as she spoke to farm workers andmedia in front of the El Cajon,California Municipal Court on May 7.

Huerta and picketing farm work­ers had gathered at the courthouse toprotest the arraignment of pesticidedealer George Azuma on misdemeanorcharges for his involvement in thedeath of farm worker Juan Chabolla onAugust 5, 1985.

Chabolla, 32, was ordered to be­gin working in a tomato field atMirada Farms (San Diego County)only an hour after it had been sprayedwith the deadly pesticide, Monitor.After complaining of the fumes, hecollapsed a few hours later.

Fred Hatashita, owner of MiradaFarms, drove Chabolla 45 miles acrossthe border to a Tijuana clinic instead oftaking him to a nearby hospital foremergency treatment. Chabolla wasdead on arrival.

..Farm workers protest the weak charges brought against George Azuma for his involvementin the death of Juan Chabolla.

10 11

Simon Baca, one of the LoBue Bros. workers, displays the severe bums he receivedon his stomach, chest and neck.

situation, we'll automatically go out(to the fields)," he said.

Churchill further claimed that thetype of injury suffered by the workersis "so common" that it does not meritinvestigation unless a doctor says so-­a company doctor.

Churchill should know how com­mon the problem is. The county he isin charge of has the highest number offarm workers suffering injuries frompesticide exposure in the state.

The growers claim that they arenot responsible for the poisonings. Ina press release issued by the company,Fred LoBue is quoted as saying,"While we are concerned about ourown workers, the manufacturer (Uni­royal Chemical) wants to know moreabout the reactions here." Dr. MarionMoses, a physician and the head of theNational Farm Workers Health Group,examined and interviewed many of theLoBue Bros. workers. She said, "TheCalifornia Department of Food and

12

Agriculture is supposed to beprotecting not only farm workers butalso consumers. CDFA has used farmworkers as guinea pigs."

Omite CR was introduced in1981. It was not tested by the state todetermine whether the re-entry restric­tion (the amount of time requiredbetween the application of a pesticideand the entry of farm workers intosprayed fields) should be extended.

The re-entry restriction for OmiteCR was seven days. After the poi­sonings, the state changed the re-entryperiod to 28 and then to 35 days.Because so many people were poi­soned, the state has finally decided toconduct hearings on the pesticide'sdangers.

The growers are blaming the poi­soning on the weather. They maintainthat warm weather causes Omite CRto break down at a normal rate and thatthe cool weather California has beenexperiencing lately has affected the

pesticide. Cha~ez responded, "Againwe see workers poisoned, consumers'health threatened and the weather getsblamed."

Dr. Moses claimed, "The con­sumers are victimized because of thecontaminated fruit that results. fromthese types of pesticide misuse."

Chavez also believes that thehealth of consumers may be affectedby the oranges. "We are asking LoBueto voluntarily recall the fruit that basbeen shipped out, and if he refuses, weare demanding that Berryhill (directorof the CDFA) obtain a court order toquarantine the fruit," he said.

The health of the farm workerswho picked the fruit may be affectedfor the rest of their lives. Simon Baca,22, is one of the workers who sufferedthe severest burns. The burns cover hisback, chest, stomach and neck. "Theydidn't send us to a doctor for three orfour days" after the incident, Baca said."When they did send us, the doctor toldus we could go back to work. For thepast few days I have been feeling verybad, but they (the company doctor andofficials) told us to continue working."

Another worker who receivedchemical burns, David Navarrete, saidthe company doctors treating theworkers did not know what they weredoing. He said they talked to eachother and discussed their uncertaintyabout what to prescribe for the work­ers' burns. Finally, the doctor gave theworkers an ointment. Navarrete saidthe ointment was ineffective, and hesought medical help on his own.

The doctor who treated the work­ers is Willard Christiansen. He is paid·by Uniroyal, the manufacturer ofOmite CR. It is not surprising thatChristiansen is prei:licting a full recov­ery for the workers.

Chavez and Dr. Moses explained,to the workers that once the skin is

LoBue Bros. workers picket their employerfor exposing them to dangerous pesticides.

compromised by this type of burn, thechance of the injury recurring is good.Chavez said, "Once you get skinpoisoning, you'll always have it. Itnever goes away."

Churchill argues that the orangessent to .consumers are not dangerous.Candy Hislip knows differently. Sheworks at Tri-Citrus, the companyresponsible for washing and waxingthe fruit grown by LoBue Bros. "Iwould not eat that fruit," Candy said."It smelled worse than cat piss."

Hislip said that after workingwith the fruit, she and her fellowworkers felt ill. "It made my eyes cry,my nose run, and the smell made mystomach turn. The lady working nextto me had to sit down," Hislip said.She added, "I wouldn't buy it (thefruit). It smelled lousy, and nobody

- knows what's going to happen withthat fruit." Y

13

GUEST COLUMN

The UFWandDeukmejian

It's my opinion that the majorstumbling block of the United FarmWorkers, and organized labor in Cali­fornia, is Governor George Deukmej­ian, whose anti-labor appointees tokey state boards are constantly under­mining us.

Due to this hostile political cli­mate in Sacramento, the UFW has notbeen able to get the growers to bargainin good faith, allow for free and fairelections, and stop using toxic pesti­cides in the fields (which endangerfarm workers as well as consumers).

Even though Governor JerryBrown set up an Agricultural Rela­tions Board during his administrationto protect the rights of farm workers,Deukmejian's ARLB appointees havesabotaged the original mission of thisbody.

Talk about letting the "fox guardthe hen house." The Duke's state laborcommissioner, Lloyd Aubry, Jr., andhis appointee to the ARLB, GeneralCounsel Dave Stirling, are both well­known for their strong anti-union senti­ments.

Another Deukmejian appointeeand anti-Iaborite is Clare Berryhill,director of the California Departmentof Food and Agriculture. After takingthis job, he immediately announced heplanned to ease the regulations regard­ing the control and use of chemicalpesticides in the state. Berryhill is aSan Joaquin Valley farmer/business­man with a conservative voting recordas a state legislator. He lobbied againstmajor provisions of SB 950, ameasure carried by Senator Nick Petris

14

William R. Robertson

of Oakland and backed by major medi­cal and environmental groups. It wouldrequire the CDFA to fill data gapswhere the department has inadequatehealth and safety information on pesti­cides being used in California.

The Governor vetoed SB 370 also-- "The Occupational Disease Ident­

ification Program." Further, he cut outof the budget pro-labor programs suchas additional worker's compensationjudges needed to clear the litigationbacklog and speedup benefits forinjured workers. And he vetoed fundingfor the ALRB to complete processingof back-pay cases involving millionsof dollars owed to thousands of farmworkers.

Since the 1960s, the UFW hashelped thousands of farm workers winprotection from toxic pesticides aswell as many other benefits. But thatprogress is being destroyed becausetoday corporate growers and chemicalproducers thoroughly dominate the ad­ministration of state government. y

William R. Robertson is the Exec­utive-Secretary Treasurer of the LA.County Federation ofLabor AFL-CIO.

FROM OURREADERS

Dear Mr. Chavez:I am engaged in teaching at the

I?epartment ofnconomics, Hosel Univer­Sity Tokyo, Japan. I am doing a specialstudy of agricultural economics ana havemuch interest in the structural change ofAmerican agtjculture, the farm workermovement, and unionism.

I have heard about the UFW's longfight to improve and stabilize the workingconditions of farm workers. Recently 1learned about your magazine, "Food andJustice." I would like very much to receiveit on a regular basis.

Professsor Katsumi KitaTokyo, Japan

Dear Mr. Cesar Chavez:I am writing you these few lines to let

you know that I am one of those grapeworkers who now have lung cancer. Ibelieve it comes from when I worked downin the Coachella Valley fields thinning andpic~~ggrapes. We were sprayed with somepestlcloe.

We would be working and then told tomove over just one or two rows. As soon asthe spray tractor passed, we had to go backin the Vines to work. We were dripping wetwith the chemicals.

Last year, after working 17 years, Iwa~ t<;>ld I have lung ~ancer. I ha~e gottenr!ldlatlOn. therapy, hoping and prayInil willhve a little longer for the sake of mychildren. I am only 48 years old.

May the Lord help you with yourwork.

Oralia Rodriguez ValenciaCorona, California

Dear Brothers and Sisters:Received your magazine again today. I

hav~ been boycotting table grapes ever sincegetting a letter fromMr. Cfiavez last year. Iwill continue to do so. Let's hope I can helpmake a difference!

Thelma WambleTucson, Arizona

Dear Cesar Chavez:As a nurse and mother, I'm concerned

about the health of people and theearth, both now and for the future of thechildren. We have been boycotting tablegrapes and will continue to do so.

Patricia MarjaviSan Francisco, CA

Dear Cesar Chavez:Thank you for using your new grape

boycott to draw attention not only to thepo!son~ng of farm workers but also to thepOisoning of grapes and land and water.Maybe this could be the turning point incausing people to realize the oisastrouseffects the greed of growers has on the foodand health of the wfiole country.

God bless you and grant you success!Mary J. O'Donnell

Schoharie, New York

Dear Friends at "Food and Justice":For the past :tear I have looked forward

to the issues of Food and Justice." Eachissue has raised my consciousness and~ncreased my actions in support of yourImportant cause. Be assured oT my prayersfor the wonderful work the UFW and yourmagazine do for the freedom of theoppressed.

Ruma Perez, Dir. Centro CulturalCornelius, Oregon

Dear Cesar Chavez:As a member of the Women's

International League for Peace and Freedomand as a senior citizen, I support your juststruggle and your table grape boycott.LiVing on a fixed income, rfind it hard tocontnbute more generously than I do, but Iwill keep contributing as much as I can.

.Wlth be~t wishes for your success, Iremain yours In the struggle.

Max ShlafrockFlorida Sr. CitizensHallandale, Florida

15

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