Autobiography of La Causa (INSCRIBED by Chavez)
New York: W.W. Norton, 1975. First Edition. INSCRIBED "To Fermin my brother in solidarity in our union cause! Cesar Chavez. 1-18-1977. Phoenix." 8vo. 546 pp. Index. Photo-reproductions. Red cloth in color illustrated dustjacket. Small postage stamp of Chavez taped on ffep; front hinge cracking; else near fine in near fine dustjacket (lower front flap corner clipped; $12.95 price upper corner). Three 8" x 10" black & white prints of Chavez laid in. The inscribee probably refers to Fermin "Fred" Ross Sr. who was the person who drew Chávez into grassroots organizing. Without Ross’s influence, Chávez himself said he might never have gone into full-time activism. Item #21077
The authorized autobiography of farm labor leader Cesar Chavez that was published just as the Farm Workers Union was winning labor contracts with California growers. Chavez was a Mexican American labor leader and civil rights activist who dedicated his life’s work to what he called 'La Causa' (the cause): the struggle of farm workers in the United States to improve their working and living conditions through organizing and negotiating contracts with their employers. Along with Dolores Huerta, Chavez co-founded the National Farm Workers Association (NFWA), which later merged with the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee (AWOC) to become the United Farm Workers (UFW) labor union. A controversial figure, UFW critics raised concerns about Chavez's autocratic control of the union, the purges of those he deemed disloyal, and the personality cult built around him, while farm-owners considered him a communist subversive. He became an icon for organized labor and leftist groups in the U.S. and posthumously became a "folk saint" among Mexican Americans.
Price: $425.00