We have some exciting news to share with you about the "Remembering the Struggle" Art Exhibit, including information about the Opening Events, a new Strike Photo and Document Archive on our website, and a newly received grant. Read on for more details...

Opening Events on August 1st, 2008

Please mark your calendars for the "Remembering the Struggle" Opening Events!

5pm to 6:30pm | Watsonville Downtown Plaza
Viernes Cultural Community Remembrance Celebration with Speakers, Songs, Poetry, and more!

6:30pm | Procession from Plaza to Gallery
Procession with former Watsonville cannery strikers and the community

7pm to 9pm | Pajaro Valley Gallery
37 Sudden Street, Watsonville
Pajaro Valley Arts Council hosts the Exhibit Opening Reception
Meet and mingle with contributing artists and get a "taste of Watsonville" through local food and celebration

We look forward to seeing you there!  

If you have any questions, please contact Carmina at (831) 536-4436 or pvacStrikeExhibit@gmail.com

Related Community Events in August

Check out the following related events put on by an informal coalition of organizations in the spirit of remembering the struggle!

August 20 | Overcoming Racism and Building a Racially Just County
Contact: Joseph Barndt (831) 345-6349

August 21 | 6pm | Twentieth Anniversary Civil Rights Celebration: Dolores Cruz v. City of Watsonville 1988-2008
Fundraiser for the Pajaro Valley Cesar Chavez Democratic Club
Green Valley Grill, 40 Penny Lane in Watsonville
Tickets $35, Contact: Luis Alejo (831) 726-6032

August 22 | 6:30-8pm | Remembering the Watsonville Cannery Strike and Voting Rights Struggle: an evening with Cruz Gomez
Hosted by the Women's International League for Peace & Freedom, Pajaro Valley Chapter
United Presbyterian Church, 112 East Beach Street, Watsonville (Parking in church lot, back of Watsonville Cabrillo Lot)
Free event, Community Potluck--bring a dish!
Contact: Jeanne Pirano, (831) 724-3846

Archive of Strike Photos and Documents

We have had the amazing good fortune to work with two archives so far, San Francisco State University's Labor Archives & Research Center and the Pajaro Valley Historical Association. Together, we are proud to announce that we have been able to create the largest online collection of Watsonville Cannery Strike materials in existence. The archive is available online now.

The archive includes promotional materials used by strike participants, photographs from newspapers, and full newspaper articles. A majority of the material was digitized from the Frank Bardacke Collection at the Labor Archives & Research Center, and many thanks go out to the wonderful Catherine Powell, the Archives Director. We are actively seeking other participants to contribute to our growing digital archive. Please contact the curators or reply to this email for more information.

The archives go a long way toward capturing the general milieu that Watsonville found itself in during the midst of the strikes. The images especially capture a sense of the strikes that simply cannot be replicated any other way. Our thanks go out to the photographers, many of whom we hope will join us during the exhibit opening.

Photo by Kurt Ellison, Register-Pajaronian. Provided and digitized by the Labor Archives & Research Center.

Grant from the Cultural Council of Santa Cruz County

And lastly, I am happy to announce that we are a recipient of a Project Support Grant from the Cultural Council of Santa Cruz County. Thank you CCSCC and to all who helped in the grant writing process!

Thanks for all of the support and please, feel free to email or call if you have questions. Let's continue the conversation!