1966 Farm Workers Rally and March

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker remembers about the 1966 Farm Workers Rally and March — so let's get into it. June 1, 1966. Seven hundred Starr County melon farm workers walk off the job.

Not on a whim, not over something small. They're striking against wages that fall beneath the national minimum wage, and against working conditions that, by any measure, are harsh. Seven hundred people deciding that enough is enough — that right there is where this story begins.

Now, word travels. Eugene Nelson, of the National Farm Workers Association, comes down to south Texas. He organizes what becomes the affiliated Independent Workers Association, and he leads the strike against La Castia Farms and other area growers.

And he doesn't do it alone. Two local men had already been calling for reform years before Nelson arrived — Margil Sanchez and Lucio Galvan — and they join Nelson in his efforts. You get the sense this fire had been smoldering for a good long while.

The growers give them nothing. No satisfaction. And amid violence from local authorities, the workers make a decision that takes real courage: if the growers won't hear them, maybe Austin will.

They're going to walk to the state capitol — all three hundred and eighty miles of it — to urge officials to create a statewide minimum wage. They set out on July 5, 1966, from Rio Grande City. July.

South Texas. If you know what that sun feels like on your back in July, you understand the kind of resolve it takes just to put one foot in front of the other. They stop to rest at homes along the way, and something remarkable happens — every community they pass through, they pick up more support.

The Texas AFL-CIO sends supplies and financial backing. The march is moving, literally and otherwise. On July 29, 1966, the marchers reach Robstown.

Supporters hold a rally at the Knights of Columbus Hall. Mass is celebrated at St. Anthony's Catholic Church.

People feed them, give them a place to sleep. The next morning, they head into Corpus Christi along Highway 44 — Agnes Street — and hundreds of local supporters turn out to walk alongside them. Mass is held at the Corpus Christi Cathedral.

Then a rally at the Peoples Street T-Head, attended by more than eight hundred people, raises over a thousand dollars for the strike and the march. Over a thousand dollars. That number meant something then.

From Corpus Christi, they march on toward Austin. There are obstacles — the marker doesn't dress that up — but there is also support, community by community, mile after mile. And then — Labor Day, 1966.

Austin. The march culminates in a rally with more than ten thousand people in attendance. Ten thousand.

What had started with seven hundred workers in a melon field in Starr County had grown into something the state of Texas could not ignore. The effects ripple forward. The 1971 state minimum hourly wage law eventually passes — though, and the marker is honest about this, it does not apply to farm workers.

Still, the march and its rallies augment the number of Mexican American elected officials and further mobilize the Chicano Civil Rights Movement in Texas. Three hundred and eighty miles on foot in the Texas summer heat, started by people who were paid less than the national minimum wage and told, essentially, that that was just the way things were. They walked until the story was too loud to ignore.

That's the kind of march you don't forget — and now, thanks to this marker in Nueces County, you don't have to.

What the marker says

On June 1, 1966,700 Starr County Melon Farm workers went on strike in protest of wages beneath the national minimum wage and harsh working conditions. Eugene Nelson of the National Farm Workers Association came to south Texas, organized the affiliated Independent Workers Association, and led the strike against La Castia Farms and other area growers. Two local men who called for reform years prior, Margil Sanchez and Lucio Galvan, joined Nelson in his efforts. Received no satisfaction from the growers and amid violence from local authorities, farm workers began a 380-mile march to the state capitol in Austin to urge officials there to create a statewide minimum wage. The group began on July 5, 1966, in Rio Grande City, stopping to rest at homes along the way and gaining support from each community encountered. The marchers received supplies and financial support from the Texas AFL-CIO. The marchers reached Robstown on July 29, 1966, where supporters held a rally at the Knights of Columbus Hall and a mass at St. Anthony's Catholic Church, and provided food and lodging. The next morning, they marched into Corpus Christi along Hwy 44 (Agnes Street), spurred on by hundreds of local supporters. Mass was held at the Corpus Christi Cathedral and a rally at the Peoples Street T-Head to benefit the strike and march was attended by more than 800 people, with over $1,000 raised. From Corpus Christi. They marched on to Austin, meeting obstacles but gaining support along the way. The march culminated in Austin with a rally on Labor Day 1966 with more than 10,000 people in attendance. Among the significant effects of the march and rallies was the eventual passage of the 1971 state minimum hourly wage law, though it did not apply to farm workers that augmented the number of Mexican American elected officials and further mobilized the Chicano Civil Rights Movement in Texas.