These events are being held in conjunction with the traveling exhibition Bittersweet Harvest: The Bracero Program, 1942-1964. The show, created by the Smithsonian National Museum of American History and the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service, is currently on view in John Spoor Broome Library, Room 1320. The exhibition relates the history of the nation's largest guestworker program and tells the story of an important chapter in US and Mexican history. The exhibition and all of the events are free and open to the public.
Come celebrate with us as we unveil the Smithsonian National Museum of American History exhibition: Bittersweet Harvest: The Bracero Program, 1942-1964 and CSU Channel Island's: The Braceros of Ventura County exhibition. We will share this celebration with former braceros and their families who have participated in the Bracero Project. The event is free and open to the public. Reception of food, refreshments, and music will follow. This event is made possible by generous funding from Pacific Oaks Federal Credit Union.
Former United Farm Workers Vice President, Dolores Huerta, who continues to work tirelessly developing leaders, advocating for working poor, women and children will speak about the Bracero Program. This event is made possible by generous funding from California Faculty Association and MEChA.
Come learn from nationally recognized spoken word poet Paul Flores as he leads a workshop for those who want to learn more about performance poetry, hip hop activism and using their own words to create social change and impact.
Paul will perform and host a Poetry Slam event where CI students will perform their poetry, rap and stories.
We will screen the new documentary, Harvest of Loneliness: The Bracero Program, directed by Gilbert Gonzalez and Vivian Price. Hidden within the historical accounts of minorities, workers, and immigrants in American society is the story of the millions of Mexico’s men and women who experienced the temporary contract worker program known as the Bracero Program. Harvest centers on the voices of ex-braceros speaking of their experiences and addresses what to expect from a new temporary contract worker program. The film also focuses on the wives and families who were left behind as an untold number of villages were virtually emptied of men. There will be a Question & Answer with the filmmakers after the movie.
Dr. Matthew Garcia is Associate Professor of American Civilization, Ethnic Studies and History at Brown University. He is the author of A World of Its Own: Race, Labor, and Citrus in the Making of Greater Los Angeles, 1900-1970. In his current project, The California South: Race, Labor and Justice on the California Border, 1900-1980, he explores the formation of agricultural empires in the California desert and the exploitation of natural resources and Mexican labor which made it possible. Dr. Garcia will speak about the history and legacy of the Bracero program and how this relates to the ongoing debate about immigration reform.
This event will focus on ex-braceros , some who are members of the“ Alianza de Exbraceros Del Norte, 1942-1964” who are fighting to reclaim 10% of their wages taken from their paychecks during their participation in the bracero program.
