Vacaville tree pruners' strike
Following the failures of these two strikes the CAWIU leaders realized the difficulty of establishing a solid agricultural labor movement around spontaneous and unplanned uprisings.
Darcy felt that the only hope of success for the Communist party in District 13 was to disregard its own political interests in favor of improving the wages and working conditions of the workers.
When orchardists cut their tree pruners' wages on November 14, 1932, the CAWIU had gained ample influence among local farm workers to call the first prearranged strike in its history.
[9] Buck was Vacaville's largest grower who, just a few days prior on November 8, had been elected as a Democrat to the U.S. House of Representatives, receiving support from nearly every voting farm worker in his district.
[10] The strike began on November 14, the day Buck's reduced wage rate went into effect, when 400 Spanish, Japanese, Filipino, and white tree pruners walked off their jobs.
[16] Police, who were greatly outnumbered, attempted to arrest six strike leaders but eventually released them after being surrounded by a large mob of picketers.
[20] On December 4 more than 150 strikers met at the home of John Lopez, the first person to attack during the November 25 riot, and marched together to the city library.
[21] The crowd of strikers, led by a front line of young women, chanted and carried banners reading "$1.50 and eight hours" and "Free Donald Bingham," a demonstrator arrested at the November 25 riot.
Speeches were given by strike supporters such as James Melgar of Vacaville, Robert Nelson of San Jose, and Nora Conklin of Sacramento, all of whom were eventually arrested that day.
[22] The riot started during a speech by Nora Conklin, an International Defense League worker, who urged the strikers to return to the Lopez home.
[23] The day after the riot at the city library a group of about 30 masked men invaded the Vacaville jail, kidnapped six strike leaders, and drove away with them in seven waiting automobiles, warning journalists and other townspeople not to follow.
[30] The telegrams, signed by the International Labor Defense's national secretary William L. Patterson, demanded the immediate arrest of all individuals and town officials involved in the incident.
Intimidation by local antilabor forces, farm owners, and townsmen was taking its toll, relief from outside sources was dwindling, and attendance at strike meetings had drastically fallen.
Union leaders recognized that, in order for it to have been successful, the strike should have been called at harvesttime when farm employers would be under immediate pressure to reach a settlement.
[35] This anti-communist sentiment was carried on to the Vacaville jail incident three days later when masked men kidnapped six strike leaders and, among other abuses, covered them with red paint.
During the later stages, however, mass picket lines were made up of mostly women and children in an effort to protect male strikers from further violence and physical abuse.
Under Sam Darcy's leadership a group of new and able organizers had taken over the CAWIU and, by the end of the strike in 1933, the union had gained the attention, respect, and confidence of California farm workers.
