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Local FLOC leader to give keynote talk to
honor King
The event tomorrow night coincides with King's Jan. 15 birthday, which
this year falls four days before the federal holiday commemorating the
civil rights leader.
While King's legacy is most often associated with the struggles of
African-Americans, the Smithsonian's program highlights individuals
whose career work has embodied King's philosophy, said Marcia Baird
Burris, a public affairs specialist with the institution.
Other recent speakers have included writer Amiri Baraka and Robert
Bullard, a sociology professor and director of the Environmental Justice
Resource Center at Clark Atlanta University.
Mr. Velasquez suggested this year's theme, "Latinos and Civil Rights:
Changing the Face of America," when the Smithsonian contacted him late
last year while searching for a speaker.
In an interview, Mr. Velasquez, 61, said he plans to focus in part on
the challenges faced by migrant farm workers within the context of the
still-unfolding global economic crisis.
Last night he was still composing the speech, which he expects to run
about 35 minutes.
"It's quite a humbling honor," Mr. Velasquez said of his selection for
the program. "It's a great opportunity to voice the issues."
The son of second-generation farm workers, Mr. Velasquez founded FLOC in
1967 while a student at Bluffton College to combat the type of
injustices that he felt his parents experienced as migrant laborers.
FLOC has led boycotts against high-profile companies including the
Campbell Soup Co. and the Mt. Olive Pickle Co., achieving in both
instances three-way agreements involving the companies, its tomato or
pickle farmers, and representatives for laborers in the crop fields.
Today FLOC claims about 12,000 members, with the majority in Ohio and
North Carolina. Mr. Velasquez has been compared to the late labor leader
and activist Cesar Chavez.
Mr. Velasquez plans to arrive in Washington later today to be
interviewed about his life's work for the Smithsonian's oral history
program.
He said the Smithsonian is paying his traveling and lodging expenses,
and that he plans to return to home Friday to Sylvania Township. He said
his busy work schedule precludes him from staying in Washington for
Tuesday's inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama.
The King program is set for 7 p.m. tomorrow in the National Museum of
Natural History, and include a folk-music performance by Rudy Arredondo,
chief executive of the National Latino Farmers and Ranchers Trade
Association.
Now in its 24th year, the program is co-sponsored by the Anacostia
Community Museum - the Smithsonian's museum of African-American history
and culture - and the Smithsonian Latino Center.
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