In San Diego and Imperial Counties, we are proud to count many workers of Native descent among our union members. We honor the rich heritage and modern struggles of our Native siblings.

every corner of the country. One of the most noteworthy examples are the Mohawk Skywalkers, a group of Ironworkers who have helped build many of America's most iconic skyscrapers, including the Empire State Building and the Sears Tower.

Native people found solidarity across tribes, across geographies and across cultures. Working together, people from many tribal traditions fought for recognition, honor and freedom. Native workers have made enormous contributions to America, and are proud members of unions in

But focusing only on oppression would be to ignore the incredible resilience and achievements of Native people. Native people faced unimaginable acts of cruelty and genocide, but perservered. They preserved languages, culture and knowledge even as official US policy sought to eradicate them.

Since the earliest days of America's colonial history, Native workers have been part of America's story. White colonists exploited, dispossessed, enslaved and oppressed Native Americans to build this country—a history we can't overlook or forget.

Luisa died of tuberculosis in 1922, at just 42 years old. She played a key role in reshaping life for millions of workers and millions more women.

In 1915, she was arrested for wearing pants in public—the first Puerto Rican woman to do so. When she defended herself, the judge dropped all charges. The case changed women's fashion and laws of "decency" in Puerto Rico and far beyond.

Luisa helped organize and lead the Sugar Strike of 1916, when forty thousand sugar workers walked off the job for five months. The strike created a national salary for laborers and fundamentally changed labor organizing and the economy in Puerto Rico.

She began publishing essays and union literature. In 1909 she published "Mi opinión sobre las libertades, derechos y deberes de la mujer" (My opinion about the rights, liberties, and responsibilities of women), a book on women's rights that became famous around the world.

She began to meet leaders of the unions that were organizing workers, and became involved in the struggle. In 1905, Luisa began organizing in earnest as agricultural workers prepared to strike. Over more than a decade, she became a force within the Puerto Rican labor movement.

They homeschooled Luisa, with long lessons about the French Revolution and the workers' rights fight in Spain. Luisa took work as a "lectora," reading newspapers and novels out loud to workers who stripped leaves and rolled cigar in the tobacco factories.

Luisa Capetillo was born in Arecibo, Puerto Rico. Sugar and tobacco were the two biggest industries, and workers toiled long hours in cane fields and tobacco factories. Her parents were immigrants to Puerto Rico. Her father came from the Basque country of Northern Spain, and her mother from France.

We continue to fight in our workplaces and for public policy that ensures one job is enough to thrive and for a standard work week that leaves us enough time and freedom to live rich, full lives.