1. The Migrant Experience in California

2. Why did people come to California after World War I ?
Hard economic times—Great Depression
Farmers losing their farms
30% unemployment rate
7 year drought began
Dust storms
Midwest became the Dust Bowl

3. What Was So Attractive About California?
Mild climate–long growing season
Image of the “promised land”
US Highway 66-“Route 66”
Advertised for farm workers

4. Who were the Okies? Migrants from any state were called “Okies”
Just 20% were from Oklahoma
Most were from Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas and Missouri
Had shared heritage of Anglo-Saxon roots, simple upbringing, and conservative values

5. Mexican Migrant Workers
Had been in California before the Okies
Experienced discrimination
As non-Anglos
As migrant workers
As Spanish speaking immigrants
Important part of agricultural production in California

6. Universal Human Experiences
Trauma of moving away from one’s roots
Tension among people of different backgrounds
Moving often to find new work

7. Migratory Labor Camps
“The Migratory Labor Camps, set up under the Farm Security Administration in 1937, have won a real victory over the forces of stupidity and wrath that made the Valley a sink-hole of farm labor exploitation since the days of the first irrigating ditch.”

8. Life in Migrant Camps
Federal camps helped with poor sanitation and unhealthy living conditions
Rekindled a sense of community
Camps were governed by migrants
Had recreational activities

9. A Song of Migrant Workers
“Sunny Cal” by Jack Bryant, a folk song about the migrant experience.
Click on speaker symbol to hear the song.

10. Sources
All photographs are from the American Memory Collection of the Library of Congress
The information is from the article, The Migrant Experience