MOVEMENT This Plan Came Last Month from a Negro Meaningless Deaths," Says Vaughs
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U. S. POSTAGE PAID San Franl'isco, Calif, Perrr,it No. 8603 WILL WATTS SECEDE? Mr. & Mrs. Grant Cannon Watts, South Central Los Angeles, a public relations chairman, SNCC field sec 4907 Klatte Road .., colony of the poor trapped in a right retary Clifford Vaughs. Cincinnati, Ohio 45244 wing city that recently denied it even a The Alliance is a broad coalition of Ne 20¢ hospital, may pull out of Los Angeles al gro organizations, ranging from the black together. nationalists to the NAACP. It was cre THE If it does, it will join more than 70 ated after the freeing of the policeman other cities, such as Santa Monica, that who killed Leonard Deadwyler. It was have. disincorporated themselves. The felt that a riot would erupt if the com JULY name suggested for the independent Watts munity did nothing to stop police bru 1966 is FREEDOM CITY. tality. "Another riot would have caused VOL. 2 MOVEMENT This plan came last month from a Negro meaningless deaths," says Vaughs. "I !':-IO,6 Published by organization called the Temporary Al don't mind dying for a political purpose, The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee of California liance of Local Organizations, or TALO. but I don't want to die for nothing. It $204. _ The spokesman for this move is TALO's was clear that the courts and the inves tigating commissions were only going to whitewash the cops and infuriate the people. We had to take action." !,_~licing the Cops' FIELD WORKERS BOYCOTT The first, and major project of TALO was the Citizens Area Patrol (CAP). This is a fleet of cars and drivers who follow the Los Angeles Police in the Watts area. DI GIORGIO RIGGED ELECTION Their cars carry two-way radios supplied by SNCC. Within minutes after a call is made into the CAP central, a car with a FOR TERMS OF SCHENLEY CONTRAC·T SEE PAGE 6 photographer and often a tape recorder can be on the scene of an arrest or police On F rid a y, June 24, the ·action. .;l." .~, "The purpose of CAP is to observe the NFWA again 'proved that it police and protect the community," says has the support of the ma ·Vaughs. "It has given the residents of jority of farm workers in its Watts a new security. Unfortunately the police don't understand that the purpose battle with DiGiorgio. This of the Patrol is to prevent situations that was demonstrated by the will lead to riots. They harass the driv ers with tickets, stopping them, running boycott by field workers and them off the road." other DiGiorgio employees The CAP has been a rallying point for of the' 'election" at DiGior the community. Ghetto residents have felt the oppression of the police most gio's Sierra Vista and Bo [ sharply. One of the most forceful ideas rrego Springs ranches. ~ behind the creation of Freedom City is .that it would have its own police force, and the "occupying army" of the LAPD At Borrego Springs, near San Diego, would no longer have the power of terror out of 219 eligible voters (eligibility de over the community. termined . by DiGiorgio) only 84 voted. .' I There were 732 "eligible" voters at both Freedom City ranches. Of these, 347 refused to vote There are many obstacles, practical and 41 cast blank ballots. Of the 385 votes and legal, in the way of the secession. cast, the Teamsters received 281: 60were THIS BUSLOAD OF FlEW WORKERS. one of many, refused to get out when driven 271, 543 signatures, almost one out of L.lL l.lv u.ulOll. i',rOd1 W.L~ !-'h.:i..cl line dcroSS to the D1 GlOl:giO pv·• .ufl~ pi"..."'. ."1. :"V)"'u nil" "ac", ",;,"~. every four voters in Los Angeles city the road from the polling place it was by DiGiorgio several weeks earlier. picket lines around the Sierra Vista ranch must be placed on a petition to disincor not difficult to see which workers sup (Many of the students refused to par - shouted the slogan "No voten viernes" porate. 25% of the property owners in IJorted the boycott. ticipate and some actively aided the boy- to the workers in the field. On the picket the area must agree. Various city com cott). lines were some 65 student volunteers in missions must approve. field Workers Boycott :r'he refusal of the NFWA to participate Delano for a week of orientation before The move has received wide support. The first truck load of field workers in the company election was based on 8 .going to work at boycott centers around Assemblyman Mervin Dymally, John set a pattern which was to be repeated months of experience in dealing with Di- the country. Many of them felt that par- Pratt, executive director of the Southern all morning. As the truck neared the Giorgio under strike conditions. The union ticipating in the picket lines was the most California Council on Church and Race; turn into the station a hastily made charged that the election was fraudulent valuable experience of the entire program; Mrs. Yvonne Brathwaite, De m 0 c rat i c red NFWA banner appeared on a stick since the procedure, set by the company, . their enthusiasm was certainly shared by nominee in the 63rd Assembly District; .held by one of the workers. The truck, did not permit strikers to vote. Eligibili- the strikers• 'and Norman Houston, president of the instead of turning, continued down the ty was controlled by the company. In addition to leafleting and picketing, LA central NAACP branch, are among road and left the ranch accompanied by The unioq pointed out that its organizers the NFWA and AWOC filed suit in S.F. the supportel"s of the idea, along with loud shouts of approval from the pickets. were barred from the camps on ranch Superior Court seeking an injunction for- the TALO coalition. Those on the truck answered with "Viva property, while ranch supervisors openly bidding DiGiorgio to put their names on "For a generation we have vainly pro la huelga." solicited for the Teamsters. The morning the ballot. The injunction was granted. The tested against a system and a society Throughout the morning the bus and after the elections were announced, leaf- company ballot asked two questions: Did which have held us in de facto slavery," .truck loads of field workers brought in to lets appeared urging the workers to vote the worker want a union? If so, which 'says the public statement that announced vote remained seated or walked to the for the Teamsters and presenting a vague union? Thefarm workers clearly answered the drive for Freedom City. "We have ·.rope which separated the pickets from set of proposals. Workers reported that these two questions without ever touch-; been exploited by the majority of society. DiGiorgio property. During the 11 hours the leaflet was being distributed by the ing the ballots. We fear the police and the criminal of polling the strikers stood in the hot ranch supervi::3ry permnnel. There is no doubt that the election has equally. Our votes are overwhelmed by sun and sang and cheered as their com .The NFWA replied with a leaflet list- - served to sharpen and polarize the con- the majority of the electorate, a sub- paneros refused to participate in the ing the major points of the Schenley con- flict in Delano. Father Desmond, asked CONTINUED PAGE 6, COLUMN Z "free and open" election. tract-signed the same day that DiGiorgio by DiGiorgio to 0 b s e r v e at Borrego Approximately 30 field workers voted. announced its private election. Springs, refused to sign a statement that The rest of the voters were office work the election was fair. DI GIORGIO BOYCOTT ers, carpenters, plumbers, shed men, NFWA Injunction The election was supported by Bishop and some of the high-school students hired On Wednesday and Thursday the roving Willenger of the Fresno-Monterey diocese MARCH who, in a statement on June 17, launched On Saturday, July 9, at 11 a thinly veiled attack on the recognition of the NFWA as the legitimate bargaining A.M., there will be a march agent for farm workers by Schenley and up Market Street in San Christian Brothers. There was increased outside support Francisco in support of the for the Delano strikers, demonstrated by DiGiorgio boycott. The De the student volunteers and by the vigil lano March will start at outside the home of Rev. Moore, an "im partial" observer at Sierra Vista. This Drum and Market and end in vigil was joined by Negroes from Bakers the Civic Center plaza. field, led by their pastor, Rev. Stacy. Their support was mobilized by two SNCC Cesar C h a v e z and a organizers in Bakersfield, Marshall Ganz group of striking far m and Richard Flowers. Rev. Moore, a Negro workers from Delano will who claimed at the Delano Senate hear ings that Delano had the best race re-' lead the march. It is ex lations in America (a phrase used by Sen. pected that the speeches Eastland to describe Sunflower County will be brief: marchers will MissisSippi), did not refuse to sign the •'fair election" statement. go to neighboring markets DELANO NEEDS FOOD to picket. The strikers in Delano are in desperate JOIN CESAR CHAVEZ need of food for the strike-kitchen. Send staples: four, coffee, rice, meat. In San ON JULY 9 IN THE MARCH DOLORES HUERTA, NFWA vice-president on picket line. Sign rc_",,:; "i\FWA Francisco, contact the NFWA office UP MARKET STREET! Says DON'T VOTE IN FALSE: ELECTIONS," Photo: Gerhard Gschiedle 285-0213.