◆ SpookStack

we ag ay me -_— a tee A mem eee eld one AERUCAN FEDERATION © ABO? “AND CONGRESS OF Ime JTRIAL OR GANIZATIONS eet. i oe ee eT) Seanad a ET EANON eee or rarer he ee a | UNITED FARM WORKERS ORGANIZING 0 51 COMMITTEE CESAR CHAVEZ Pa LARRY ITIONG DIRECTOR ae ASST, DIRECTOR GUSTAVO GUTIERREZ ARIZONA RGPABSENTATIVE - POST OFFICE BOX 135 TOLLESON, APIZONA 83353 TELEPHONE ANTA CODE 602.934-8535 July 15, 1969 QlLORGZ MEANY D PREMOENT Wet. FF. SCHNITZLEA OTCHETHAY-TAEABUAER WILLIAM LL. MIACHER DIRUCTON OF CAGAHIZATION i et eon tt the Cpa hes eee 117 99 Nd 87 Or AD Dr. Richard K, Burke JUL i969 Urited States Attorney RECEIVED 590 Federal Building U, S, ATTORNEY Phoenix, Arizona PHOENIX S et Pear Sirt . ; Ne um 5" The United Tar Vorkers Organizing Committea is conducting a strike at several grape ranches located in the general area west of Phoenix, _ = ana Arizona, The strike began on June 17, 1969 and will probably continue until the grape harvest is finished. The purpese of this letter is to relate some of the actions of the Maricopa County Sheriff's Department during the strike and to request an investigation of this conduct, whe ' I While there has been no major single incident involving aisconduct . hy the Sheriff's Department there has been a constant occurrence of small ineidents which when viewed in their entirety establish a clear . pattern of harassment of the strikers, organizers and pickets. This Ean harassivent by the Sheriff's Department infringes upon the civil literttes gece ef those involved and represents a clear attempt by the police to inti-= pe nmidate all the farm workers, both actual union members and potential + -seagigees union members. res Some of the incidents which have occurred will now be described: re aca 1, A Deputy Sheriff stood by ddly while a ranch foreman “roughad ap". -.---=% a priest who works with the farm workers. The priesttinas his strike = buttons torn off his shirt, his hat taken off, filled with srapes and run over by a tractor, The Deputy's explanation for refusing to act was that his department was "neutral" 4n this labor dispute. The priest was told that if he wanted to take action he would have to — ON SE proceed on his own3, and after he did file a complaint, the Sherifi's Bepartnent tried to persuade him to withdraw it. On another occasion when a foreman ripped a picket sign out of the hands of one of the * pickets, a Deputy. #tood by wey Se me es 2. =A union member uho. vent to ) work: on a ranch one morning 3 wae , Followed into the fields by a Deputy who then told the foreman that the man a was a union member and had teen picketing. Tha Deputy_ then .denanded > Ses"? the man's identification, @i€hough he had done aothing | wrong, and 0 el = Pe ee I Ee interrogated him for no apparent reason,