Filipinos in the Canneries: creating ethnic unity to break the contract system and colonial power

Abstract

A crucial aspect of Seattle's labor history lies in the story of Asian and Asian American workers who were arguably one of the most oppressed and exploited groups within Washington's labor industry. This study illuminates this part of Seattle's labor history and focuses on the leading role of Filipinos and Filipino Americans in formulating the Cannery Workers and Farm Laborers Union (CWFLU). The CWFLU's methods of unionism both recognized and challenged ethnic divides in the canneries, effectively undermining efforts to perpetually subjugate Asian and Asian American workers. These methods helped formulate a Filipino nationalist identity that allowed Filipinos to distance themselves from the oppressive confines of the ";colonial"; label. This study incorporates analysis of and findings from the CWFLU Local 7 records, immigration policies such as the Exclusion Acts of 1882 and 1924, and secondary research on the labor, immigration, and social history and structure of the Pacific Northwest. This method allows for an incorporation of the historical framework that led to the subjugation of Asian and Asian American workers and showcases how Filipino's actions in the 1930s were such a pioneering move. Racial tensions were created by oppressive labor and immigration structures. Furthermore, it reveals that the Filipino leaders of the CWFLU utilized these oppressive measures and tensions as a foundation for recruitment to form a unified front that put Asians and Asian Americans in control of their own jobs and economic opportunities within the canneries. This study provides important insight into a little researched aspect of Seattle's labor history, thus providing a more complete picture of this historical moment. Furthermore, it demonstrates how radical labor unionism was utilized by Filipinos as a way to break free from their ambiguous and oppressed stances in America.