Proyecto de Jornaleros, Portland, Oregon

For over five years, Portland’s day laborers have been organizing for a better quality of life. Portland’s day laborers wait for work on street corners in a centrally located industrial area of town. Since they are without a formal site where they can seek work, Portland’s day laborers have been confronted with opposition and abuses. Partly in response to increased INS raids on street corners, the workers started organizing four years ago. Posing as employers, the INS agents would lure workers into vans and then arrest them. In a meeting with the local INS commissioner, the workers, community-based organizations and the faith community successfully convinced the INS to stop raiding the corner.

Since then, the jornaleros have been organizing to increase wages at the corner, and to educate themselves on their rights as workers and immigrants. In June 2000, the workers and supporters founded VOZ: Workers Rights Education Project. The organization’s main purpose is to improve the quality of life for Portland’s day laborers through the popular education techniques used in organizing. Current and former day laborers are on the staff and board, and VOZ offers free, volunteer-run English, Spanish literacy, music, math and computer classes on a weekly basis. The workers also produce a bi-monthly newsletter, El Jornalero, for distribtion on street corners. VOZ hold large monthly workshops on topics ranging from the economy of the corner to the future of immigration laws and policies.

Despite their accomplishments, the workers are still without a site where they can seek employment, which they have identified as their primary goal. Without a site where they can wait for work, Portland’s day laborers face harsh weather, employer abuse, and continued discrimination by local businesses. In addition, the day laborers wait for work in an area that has been zoned for redevelopment. VOZ has discovered that finding funds to open a center is challenging, and the City faces considerable opposition from local businesses who have insisted they will oppose any such effort. In the meantime, VOZ continues its organizing efforts on the corner, making significant inroads into improving relationships with local businesses and the police throughout regularly scheduled corner clean-ups and meetings where the workers describe their struggles.

The continued success of the organizing of Portland’s day laborers depends on several factors: 1) VOZ involves the workers at every level within the organization, 2) VOZ offers classes relevant to the working lives of day laborers, and 3) The organizing efforts include working hard to improve the image of the workers in the eyes of the community, the police and the city.

Thanks to Amanda Levinson, who wrote this piece and worked at VOZ for five years.

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