[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 27 (Friday, February 18, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E313]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          HONORING FORTY ACRES AS A NATIONAL HISTORIC LANDMARK

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. JIM COSTA

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, February 18, 2011

  Mr. COSTA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Forty Acres in 
Delano, California, as it is designated as a National Historic Landmark 
on February 21, 2011, in a ceremony that will honor the history of this 
important site and the thousands of farmworkers who created the 
farmworker movement in the 1960s.
  The national significance of Forty Acres is extraordinary in every 
facet. Through its association with the farmworker movement, as well as 
with labor, civil rights, environmental and social reform interests, 
this land and the buildings that sit upon it helped define an important 
part of twentieth century American history. Acquired in the spring of 
1966 by the National Farm Workers Association, Cesar Chavez had a dream 
for this forty-acre property. This bleak parcel of land would be 
transformed into a regional service center for farmworkers and an 
administrative headquarters for the growing union, United Farm Workers 
of America, which joined National Farm Workers Association, led by 
Cesar Chavez, and Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee, led by 
Larry Itliong.
  Between 1966 and 1974, farmworkers, aided by an assortment of 
supporters and volunteers, built four structures on the property: a 
gasoline station and automotive repair shop, a multi-purpose hall, a 
health clinic, and a residential building. The structures served not 
only the needs of the union, but also provided social services for the 
Chicano and Filipino community--services that were not readily 
available at that time. Chavez's vision was that Forty Acres would be 
the first of many service centers where farmworkers would be welcomed 
and have access to the goods and services that as low-income, migrant 
workers, they were not always able to receive and obtain. These 
individuals and their families could purchase gas and food, receive 
help with automobile repair, banking services, health care, legal 
assistance, and child care.
  Forty Acres was not only the administrative office and the site of 
the first regional service center of the UFW, but soon after, it also 
gained a higher level of significance because of two events that 
received national media attention. In February 1968, in the middle of 
the Delano Grape Strike, Cesar Chavez announced that he would begin a 
hunger fast in order to refocus union members on nonviolence efforts. 
Chavez set up a cot at the service station at Forty Acres and fasted 
for twenty-five days. He drew national attention with this action, and 
on March 11, 1968, Robert F. Kennedy flew to Delano to visit Chavez at 
the service station.
  The other significant event took place at Forty Acres on July 29, 
1970. The growers met with the union leaders in the multi-purpose hall, 
and after three days of negotiations, signed union contracts, thereby 
ending the almost five-year table grape strike and providing basic 
rights to fair wages and benefits, safer working environments, and job 
security to more than 70,000 farmworkers. Hundreds of union members, 
supporters, and journalists were present for the culmination of the 
hard work and dedication of the farmworker movement.
  Forty Acres, with its mission-revival style buildings and beautiful 
grounds, is a piece of American history. The Roy L. Reuther Memorial 
Building, where the union contracts were signed; the Rodrigo Terronez 
Memorial Clinic, where farmworkers and their families received 
necessary medical services; the Pablo Agbayani Retirement Village, 
where aging Filipino farmworkers were provided with affordable housing; 
and the Service Station, where Cesar Chavez began his legendary fast 
that led to national recognition of the farmworker movement.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud and honored to bring to your attention this 
important dedication. The inclusion of Forty Acres as a National 
Historic Landmark guarantees that this site will continue to serve as a 
symbol of the farmworker movement and a lesson of courage, faith and 
perseverance in our country's history for future generations.

                          ____________________