l}'S S"E ~~N~T'BE~WEEN Students and farm Workers I In English "The Voice of the Farm Worker"-Delano,Calif.-March 1, 1967-15~ EL MALCRIADO**Page 2 THE LEA:MON KING INCIDENT t BY EMMON CLARKE have to give them a chance to keep that pro mise. " It was late at night, dark outside, about 10 0' clock in the old farm house set back from the road about a half mile. The young and, beauti­ ful wife was home alone except for her three small children and her bed-ridden father-in­ law. Her husband was out of town on business. A pounding on the door, a shouted command "Open up, Police," and the beauty of a quiet night was no more. So started another episode in the indiscre­ tions of the young Captain Harry Gilbert of the Delano Police force. Gilbert, together with Sgt. Bannister of the Delano Police Department and sheriff' s depu­ ties from Tulare and Kern Counties formed a posse that was, according to the Delano Record "combing the area for a suspect wanted on a Tulare County .warrant for two counts of ass­ ault with a deadly weapon. No publicly-known facts in the case indicate that the suspect was in the area. But, the posse surrounded the home of Leamon King on the King's ranch located about three miles west of ASports Hero is aVictim of the Delano City limits. Gilbert, the city police captain, led the search. Mrs. King, frightened by the unusual activity, at first refused to answer the door. She was a­ the Delano Police lone, her husband was away, the only men in the house were her six-year old boy, an 18­ month old infant and her stroke-crippled father' LEAMON KING REPRESENTED HIS in-law. COUNTRY WITH DIGNITY IN THE INTER Why police at her door? Was it really the po­ NATIONAL OLYMPICS BUT THIS DIDN'T lice? Why late at night? Was it a lynch mob? SAVE HIM FROM ROUGH AND UNJUST What had she done? What did the MAN want? TREATMENT AT THE HANDS OF THE In the history of her people such a visit POLICE. meant horrible things. The Kings are Negroes. Afraid, she weht into her darkened bedroom and got her husband's rifle. She re-entered the living.room through a door opposite the front "I was not after an apology, " Leamon King door. The police were threatening to break told this reporter, "What I want is to be sure down the door. She placed the still sheathed ri­ that this type of thing never happens again to fle on a settee against the wall and went to th'e my family." fr<;mt door. "In my mind, " King continued, "this (the city council's actions) is a constructive step. I really don't want to make a big issue of this thing. They (the city council) have made me a promise, now we have to wait. To be fair, we EL MALCRIADO**Page 3 The Leam,on King... Other men in uniform gather on the little front porch. She looks out through the small glas s plate on the front door and sees a friendly face . He takes his I. D. card, and silently pla­ ces it against the glass. She reads it and unlat­ ches the front door. Gilbert pushes the door open am strides. --ast Mrs. King. He pauses for a moment and speaks. -,Mrs. King hears him say, "What's the matter with you?" Then he moves on swinging to the left. Down the length of the living room and then to ,STAFF his right and through the kitchen. Nothing on the back porch at the end of the kitchen. Turn right and open a door. BILL ESHER-Editor and Gilbert steps into the bedroom of' the senior Publisher. Mr. King. Only an old man here. Across the , room to his right is another door. It opens into DANIEL DE LOS REYES the living room. Managing Editor. Gilbert moves through and)to his left into the master bedroom. Back out again, he walks to J. SUJOVOLSKY- Assis­ his left and looks into the children's room. Only tant E'Utor. children there. He returns to the living room. Gilbert finds nothing so the night raiders re­ DOQG ADAIR-Associate turn to the dark. Editor. They took nothing away, but they left a house . disrupted, a woman frightened and alone, and ANDREW ZERMENO-Art terror in the night. Director Mrs. King telephoned her mother-in-law, Mrs Beatrice King, who came to the ranch and spent EMMON M. CLARKE­ the night there. Photogr$.phy Director ******************************************* BOB DUDNICK, MARY This sequence of events is true. It happened on MURPHY, MARCIA Jan. 26,1967 at the ranch of Mr. Leamon King SANCHEZ, DONNA in the countryside west of Delano. HABER-Editorial Staff Ki"ftg is a native of Delano end an international­ ly knowittrack star. In the mid-50's he ran in , the Olympic trials and in the Melbourne Games, second cl~ss postage paid at as well as representing the United States in Deleno Ca. Fresno publica- Stockholm, Sweden, running the 100-yd. and ·tion office: 1507 No. Palm. 100-:meter dashes. This issue is #55, mailed 2-18, King returned home Friday, Jan. 27, but his 1967. EDITORIAL ,AND BUSINESS wife, not wanting to worry him, said nothing. OFFICE OF EL MALCRIADO He first learned of the incident when Kern Coun­ IS 1~0 ALBANY AVE. ,DELANO ty Sheriff's Sgt. Ray Brittain was making a fol­ CALIFORNIA. Single copy price low-up investigation. 15~; subscription $2.50 a year. On Monday, Jan. 30, King and his wife attenl- El Malcriado is published bi­ weekly by Farm Worker Press (Continues on Pg. 30) :Inc., P.O. Box 1060,. Delano, California. "EI Malcrl~do, " the Voice of the Farm Worker, Is an Inde­ pendent publ1catlon, and Is not the "official newspaper" of any person or group.' Tbe editors are solely responsible for all statements and views expressed bere. EnUre Contents Copyright 1967 bY Farm Worker Press. inc. EL MALCRIADO**Page 4 sHy of California was a COMPANIES cynical move. Strike­ breaker Mohn, unable AND PEOPLE to stop the unionizing of Friends: the farm workers: now i joins his pals from Agri­ Work for the good of business, oil, and bank­ your people and stop ing who sit on the Board printing so much about and also monopolize the bad guy--a company business in the State of ~ but one person no. California. May I be an honorary Maybe Mohn can help union member? God's Governor Reagan break blessing. the back of student Charles E. Mertins strikes at Berkeley. Brown's appointment of Towson, Md. Mohn should help farm workers everywhere The Struggle Has understand how much workers have in common DON SOlACO Not Yet Ended with students at Berkeley Sirs: and elsewhere who are and hils I have been very struggling for justice and MISERIES pleased to receive El control over their own Malcriado during the lives. Free Speech, union organizing, and Editor: past year, and with much pleasure and interest I fair and equal treatment Enclosed you will find a check for $4.40, have read your commen­ under the law are only $1. 40 for remittance of 2 Malcriados, $2. 00 taries on the struggle for allowed when the bosses for the record you sent me, and $1. 00 so that a better life that is tak~ approve. you will send me the cartoon book of Don ­ ing place in California For years the bosses Sotaco. and other states. I have been trying to stop I am writing a poem on the miseries and want to congratulate you students from getting mistreatmenr that our people have suffered for the clarity with involved in labor organi­ during the last 50 years in the fields, how which you have express­ zing, civil rights, and they live in shacks as if it were a village of ed the wort~y, progress~ other political issues savages. The Mexican-American is, and con­ ive , and democratic because students have tinues to be, the forgotten man. wishes of the farm work­ power and energy to or' And with your permision, if you will grant ers. ganize people against it, I want to call this poem "Don Sotaco and Their cause has re­ their oppressors. Gov­ ernment investigations (CONT. P. 18) minded many that the old victories of the labor of the University will movement did not con­ only teach lllore young clude its history, but people that big business rather that the selfish and its government pup­ interests of the powerful pets are the real cynics must be confronted today and enemies of the and in the future. people. I wish you the best of Sincerely yours, luck in this next year. Marc Sapin Sincerely, Stanford, Cal. John B. Pierce San Francisco, Cal. The He II That Is { rs & ates s last Sirs: of Here in the County of ,tel' "Estrella" there are )f people who kill and ~r- people who rob; among EL MALCRIADO**Page 5 the latter are the sons of the public employees, LETTER FROM A NAZI TO GENE NELSON who in turn are robbers. LE ADER OF THE TEXAS FARM WORKERS Robbers that never even see the jail. Instead, th t'f.:' ~ the poorer strikers are £;0*:0;' RI put in jail. Their crime, having fought for a just (; t) cause. Everything you say in' I ll~~AND your paper about this country is true.