Spring 2024 Small Grant Recipient: Professor Christian O. Paiz

Professor Christian O. Paiz

Ethnic Studies Department 
Alina Zarate, Luis Renteria, Jennifer Garcia, Karena Cuevas, Undergraduate Research Fellows

The Strikers of Coachella: A Student-Taught History Project

Project Abstract

The United Farm Worker Movement represents a critical organization and symbol in U.S., Chicanx/Latinx, and civil rights history. Over two decades, the UFW unionized farmworkers advocated for labor law reform and built farmworker power. And yet, scholarship on the UFW Movement has been limited, especially on everyday farmworker leaders. In this project, students from the Coachella Valley will critically engage with a historical account of the UFW in the Coachella Valley. The project will conclude with student-designed presentations for the general public in the local region and with a series of short reflection pieces to provide a kaleidoscope perspective.