[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 7]
[Senate]
[Page 9053]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     IN MEMORY OF MIGUEL CONTRERAS

  Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to my 
friend and fellow Californian Miguel Contreras, secretary-treasurer of 
the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO who died suddenly 
of a heart attack on Friday, May 6 at the age of 52.
  Working families and the Latino community lost a great champion with 
the passing of Miguel Contreras.
  As the son of migrant farmworkers Miguel also labored in the 
agriculture fields of California. Yet through his passion to ensure 
equity and fairness for workers, Miguel advanced to become one of the 
premier leaders in the local, State, and national labor movement.
  As a young man Miguel worked with Cesar Chavez of the United Farm 
Workers Union to organize farm workers to secure improved working 
conditions and better wages.
  In 1996, Miguel became the executive secretary-treasurer of the Los 
Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO.
  Under his leadership the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor grew 
to become a powerful voice for working men and women of Los Angeles 
County.
  Miguel was the driving force behind the transformation of an 
organization that went from a union of 125,000 members to a multi-
ethnic coalition of union workers now nearly 800,000 strong.
  Through his leadership Miguel led a union-sponsored grass roots 
political drive that played a significant role in deciding the outcome 
of five Los Angeles congressional seats and countless state and local 
races.
  Miguel tirelessly spent his life working to empower others, no matter 
their station in life.
  While Miguel Contreras may be remembered most for his tenacity as a 
labor leader and role model for the Latino community, his efforts to 
secure a better future for American workers everywhere will live on.
  My deepest sympathy goes out to his wife Maria Elena Durazo and their 
two sons, Michael and Mario.
  Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I am deeply saddened to inform you of the 
passing of Miguel Contreras, secretary-treasurer for the Los Angeles 
County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO. I would like to take a few moments 
to recognize the many important accomplishments of Miguel Contreras and 
the tremendous impact he made on the labor movement.
  Miguel led the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor for nearly a 
decade. During his tenure, he continuously fought for the rights of 
laborers, and did so with great success. Through his guidance and 
leadership, The Los Angeles County Federation of Labor entered a period 
of unprecedented advancement and success.
  Miguel Contreras was a man with humble beginnings. The son of farm 
workers, he began working in the fields of California's Central Valley 
at a very young age. With his early exposure to the difficult life of a 
farm worker, he quickly joined the ranks of political activists in 
labor as a volunteer with the United Farm Workers of America. He stood 
with Cesar Chavez and the UFW during their national grape boycott, and 
continued the fight for workers for the remaining years of his life.
  In 1996, Miguel Contreras became the first Latino to win the post of 
secretary-treasurer for the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, 
AFL-CIO--comprising 350 local unions and more than 800,000 members. 
Under his leadership, The Los Angeles County Federation of Labor had 
seen phenomenal growth. He coordinated many successful labor rights 
victories including the labor dispute of 2000 when 8,500 janitors from 
Service Employees International Union, SEIU, Local 1877 fought for and 
won a higher standard of living and better working conditions.
  Fighting for the rights of laborers was at the core of Miguel 
Contreras' beliefs, an attribute which made him a great leader for 
laborers throughout the State of California. He cared about regular 
people and timelessly worked for their welfare.
  I invite all of my colleagues to join me and the many mourning 
members of the labor community in recognizing and honoring Miguel 
Contreras for his guidance and life-long effort in fighting to improve 
the lives of laborers. He is survived by his wife Maria Elena Durazo 
and two sons, Michael and Mario.

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