Latinos and Seattle's civil rights history

This page is a gateway to the Seattle Civil Rights and Labor History Project resources for exploring the civil rights activism of Latnos in the Pacific Northwest. Included are activist oral histories, research reports, newspaper reports, photographic collections, maps, historical documents. 

Slide Show: Raza Si! Chicano Activism in Washington State, 1965-today a powerpoint slide show introduces the history of the Chicano Movement. Includes video interview excerpts.
Activist Oral Histories  Click to learn more about these activists and watch video excerpts of their oral history interviews. 
Acevez, Pedro
Born in Wapato, Washington, Pedro Acevez was part of the first contingent of Chicano students to enroll at the University of Washington. He served as President of MEChA de UW and helped organize farm workers in the Yakima Valley as part of a United Farm Workers campaign in the early 1970s.
Alaniz, Yolanda
The daughter of farm workers, Yolanda Alaniz was active in MEChA, the Brown Berets, the Freedom Socialist Party and Radical Women, in addition to writing for the UW Daily on Chicana issues. She now works as an archivist, preserving Chicano/a history.
Bocanegra, Juan Jose
Born in Mexico, raised in Texas, Juan Bocanegra moved to Seattle in 1971 to earn a graduate degree at UW. He quickly became active in the Chicano movement on campus and in the community, including the establishment of El Centro de la Raza. He also participated in the American Indian Movement struggles..
Gallegos, Sidney
Sydney Gallegos was born into a farming family in northern New Mexico. In 1969, Gallegos came to Seattle to attend UW. One of the founders of MEChA, he was also active in El Teatro del Pioja, a guerrilla theater group. After earning his degree in dentristy, Dr. Gallegos helped found the Seattle chapter of the National Chicano Health Organization.
Gamboa, Erasmo
As a student at the University of Washington in the late 1960s and early 1970s Erasmo Gamboa was a founding member of MEChA, organized the grape boycott in support of farm workers, and was instrumental in establishing the Chicano Studies Program. He later earned his Ph.D and now teaches American Ethnic Studies and U.S. History at UW.
Gamboa, Guadalupe
Guadalupe Gamboa is one of the founders of the United Farm Workers of Washington state. He grew up in the Yakima Valley and has been active in farm worker organizing since the 1960s. A graduate of UW law school, he was also one of the founders of MEChA at UW.
Guillen, Rosalinda
Rosalinda Guillen helped lead the United Farm Workers campaign that resulted in a contract with Chateau Ste. Michelle winery in 1995. A native of Skagit County, she had worked in the fields when she was young, then built a successful career as a bank officer. She gave that up to devote herself to farm worker organizing.
 
Maestas, Roberto
Founder of El Centro de la Raza, Roberto Maestas first became involved in Chicano/Latino activism in the late 1960s as a teacher at Franklin High School. He helped organize farm workers in the Yakima valley and students at UW and South Seattle Community College before leading the effort that resulted in El Centro.

Martinez, Frank and Blanca
Frank Martinez and Blanca Estella met at the UW during the 1970s. Active in MEChA and the farm workers movement, they were also principle actors and organizers of Teatro del Piojo, the activist Chicano theater troup that performed throughout the Pacific Northwest during the 1970s.

Martinez, Ricardo
Judge Martinez grew up in Lynden, WA when his family moved there from Texas. Attending UW in the early 1970s, he was active in MEChA. After earning a law degree, he became a King County deputy prosecutor, a Superior Court judge, and since 2004, a U.S. District Court Judge.
Riojas, Rogelio
Born in Texas and raised in Eastern Washington, Riojas enrolled at UW in 1969 and became a leader of the Chicano movement, active in both MEChA and the Brown Berets. Later earning a degree in Health Administration, he has been the director of the Sea Mar Community Health Centers for the past 28 years.
Rodriguez, Jesus
Jesus Rodriquez was a Chicano movement student leader at Texas Western University (now UTEP) before joining the UW's Chicano Studies program as a graduate student. A student-activist, Rodriquez was an active member of MEChA, the Brown Berets, a co-founder of SeaMar Community Health Centers.
Saldaña, Rebecca
Raised in Seattle, Rebecca Saldaña is an activist  and labor organizer. Involved in farmworker solidarity efforts with PCUN and the United Farmworkers, she worked on Fair Trade Apples campaign. Currently she organizes janitors with SEIU Local 6 and is a board member of STITCH.
Villanueva, Tomas
Founder and past President of the United Farm Workers of Washington state, Tomas Villanueva was 14 when his family immigrated from Mexico, settling in Toppenish three years later.  Since the mid 1960s, he has devoted his life to the struggle to unionize farm workers.

Special Sections:
Research Reports Here is our growing list of reports

The Chicano Movement in Washington State 1967-2006 by Oscar Rosales Castaneda

This two-part essay traces the history of Chicano political and cultural activism in Washington State. The movement emerged in two locales: in the Yakima Valley, home to most of the state's Latinos, and in Seattle where Chicano students launched many new initiatives. Reflecting the split geography, the movement linked together campaigns to organize and support farmworkers with projects that served urban communities and educational agendas.

La Raza Comes to Campus: The new Chicano contingent and the grape boycott at the University of Washington, 1968-69  by Jeremy Simer

Chicano students at the UW mobilized for the first time  in the fall of 1968.  They formed the United Mexican American Students (UMAS), which joined and soon led a campaign in solidarity with one of the Chicano Movement’s central activities: the boycott of California table grapes in support of the United Farm Worker Organizing Committee (UFWOC), which had been on strike since 1965. The successful boycott made the UW the first campus in the United States to stop selling grapes and turned a small group of Chicano students into a force to be reckoned with.

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Copyright ©2004-2008 Seattle Civil Rights and Labor History Project.  For problems or questions regarding this site contact James Gregory. Last updated: December 19, 2007.