California declares Oct. 25 as 'Larry Itliong Day'

KVPR | By Cresencio Rodriguez-Delgado

Published October 26, 2023 at 5:47 PM PDT

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Filipino farmworkers, including Larry Itliong (left), were the first to walk out of vineyards, prompting the Delano Grape Strike. They would join forces with Mexican laborers led by Cesar Chavez to form the United Farm Workers.

Farmworker Movement Documentation Project

FRESNO, Calif. — During Filipino American History Month, California this week declared Oct. 25 as "Larry Itliong Day."

The day honors Itliong's long history of labor activism, including in the San Joaquin Valley.

Itliong emigrated to the United States as a teenager in 1913 from the Philippines. When he joined the workforce, he soon became a leading voice for change.

He helped workers at Alaskan fisheries and canneries form a union. He helped organize the asparagus strike of 1948 — the first major agricultural strike after World War 2.

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In 1956, Itliong founded the Filipino Farm Labor Union in Stockton. And in 1965, he helped organize workers against grape growers in Delano.

Itliong joined Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta to launch a nationwide strike — helping to deliver the first farmworker union contracts.

Oct. 25 is also Itliong's 110th birthday.