Murillo an activist in the family traditionLabor organizing goes back three generations in family

By James Carter
Salvador Murillo enters a room like a doctor visiting a patient. He smiles, then carefully removes a pressed gray suit jacket, dressing a coat hanger with ceremony.One gets the sense Murillo prepares for a trip to the market with the same attention to detail most reserve for weddings. He is a sage figure, the consummate, grandfather. Yet Murillo's heart beats with the passion of a crusader and with good reason. Murillo was born and raised in the tradition of the Mexican revolution. And, he sees the world through the discerning eyes of an organizer.

A highly respected leader, especially in west Berkeley, Murillo serves as a student services specialist for the Berkeley Unified School District where, essentially, he is a youth advocate. Yet his involvement with community groups, projects and foundations reads like an endorsement list for mayoral candidate. But Murillo's true calling is as a son of the working class. "I've always focused on the what would be of concrete benefit to the community," Murillo said. "My work was really with the working class." Murillo has been a labor organizer since he was a young man. "I was working one day out in Tie hot sun picking cotton," he recalled. I was just a kid. But 1 said to myself, if I ever have a chance to help people doing this type of work, I will." The activist later had an opportunity to fulfill his vow. He volunteered to help the United Farm Workers Union organize in the fields. On many occasions, Murillo's impressive presence 1~lnded him stints providing security for Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta. "I did a lot of security back then for the union. I have poor vision, but the other side didn't know," he laughed.

Murillo in the blood

"My grandfather was doing labor organizing in Mexico back in the 1910's," Murillo said. "He was arrested by the federales in Jalisco. His name was on a list and they came into the house and arrested him by what is called la querda. It was a rope they put around your neck. The federales would get several people and tie everyone together with a rope around their neck and their hands tied behind their backs, just walking behind a horse. They told him he had two choices join the army or get shot 'while tying to escape.' You know So he joined the army and my father and mother and grandmother never saw him again" Murillo's grandfather, Victoriano, was arrested for organizing peasants in Jalisco into a co-operative. That angered the owners of the big ranches and the merchants in town that bought beans and rice from the campesinos. Victonano wasn't the only one fighting for hurnan rights in Mexico back then. In the north, Pancho Villa waged a revolution and encountered many foes, including forces led by US. General John"Black Jack"- Pershing In the south there was Emiliano Zapata, perhaps the greatest of all Mexican leaders. But there was no liberation army to rescue Victoriano in Jalisco, During the Mexican Revolution, a lot of people starved, Murillo said."My grandmother used to say there was not even a grain of salt to eat back then" he said Practically every man and boy strong enough to shoulder a gun, did. As a consequence many crops withered on the vine . The Murillo family traveled back and forth between Arizona and Mexico for many years going where there was work. "My parents were U.S. citizens," Murillo said, and lived in Arizona during and after the Mexican Revolution. They were born in Lawrencia, a mining town there".

But when the Great Depression struck, Murillo's parents and thousands of other US citizens were forced to move to Mexico. "Over 450,000 Mexicans were deported during that time Murillo said. It was called the repatriation, but it was deportation. "At that time, my father was a labor organizer in the mines of La Esperanza and Bisby. They were trying to organize the union because there where two wages one for the Mexican-Americans and one for Anglos. I guess it was bad timing because a lot of people that were very active organizing were arrested and deported. "The Wobblies (International Workers of the World) were helping us," Murillo said. "They were teaching us how to organize. They were very instrumental in bringing in a lot of the benefits to some of the workers. But mining companies didn't buy that, and they came down on us very hard. So my parents were deported." In 1933, Murillo was born in the little town of Colotlan, Mexico, After the Depression, the family moved back to Arizona. In 1949, young Murillo and his father made their way to the Bay Area after, a short stay in Los Angeles. They soon found jobs in a foundry and sent for the rest of the family. Murillo was 16 years Old At the age of 50, Murillo's father Celio died. And before long, the young man followed his father footsteps and became involved in union activites.He helped to organize the Stationary Engineers Local 39. As a result, it was tough for Murillo to make a living. "I used to get into a lot of trouble. Wherever I worked I was pro-union. And I'd get fired, you know.

My mother did not appreciate me getting involved in labor organizing because she told me,' Look what happened to your father. He always wound up in jail. Look what happened to your grandfather He always ended up in jail." Murillo did eventually end up in jail. In fact he was there often. Murillo was in jail with Cesar Chavez, Bill O'Donnell and thousands Of others Committed to la Causa Murillo persisted. He volunteered to help organize one group after another: The community leader helped to create organizations that provided child care to waking mothers, education to the children of poor and working families, health care services, food banks, counseling career development and specialized schools you name it, Murillo had a hand in it. The Murillo family paid a price for his work and suffered some tough times. It was not easy to provide for a family when most of his time was spent volunteering. At one point while helping to organize a union in the Bay Area, Murillo said he asked an official for a job.

"But the message the official got was I was looking for a job with the executive board, as a business agent And he said, I tell you, you are a good organizer; but because of your accent, it's very hard! "What about nry accent?" he replied. "Oh well, you have the Spanish accent! I said well, Kennedy has an accent 'But Kennedy, Was the pmsident' So? It's hard for me to believe you cannot find me a job as a janitor or whatever; you know? I ask you for a job but you think I'm going to take your job..." After a while, the activits's wife and mother began to say, "You re always helping people get a job, you're helping people get an education. How about you" So Murillo went to school, first at the old Merritt College, then the University of San Francisco. Though it took him "twice as long" to advance than other people he worked full time and continued to organize while in school Murillo, plowed ahead at USF until he earned his doctorate.

Murillo continues to fight for Latinos and working people in Berkeley Though employed by the school district, he is critical of the city and believes many local politicians do not give working folks a break. and continued to organize while 'in school Murillo, plowed ahead at USF until he earned his doctorate. Murillo continues to fiot for Latinos and working people in Berkeley Though employed by the school district, he is critical of the city and believes many local politicians do not give working folks a break.

I think the city of Berkeley needs to make certain that the working clm is not left out of the beriefits others reodv%" he said. "The working individual needs to have a break Just because they work and make a little extra money, they dont qualily for programs that are provided to others. And they carit afford the things that people who make a lot of money can do. The citv also needs to make an effort day you could buy a home with $500 to $1,000 down. Now you've got to have $20,000 or more and you have to have two people working.

The people they are moving art, to Richmond or San Pablo since they cannot afford to live in Berkeley. Im taking about the waking bolim Them should be somehow (plan so that if someone is working do can have an opportunity to buy affordable home. "Who holds all the political power in this ciV. What is the ethnic group, the class of the people who control thingsT' Murillo said "They are the ones that get the inside information, the benefits. The average person does til know what's going on. They pay the taxes, even thougli they say it's not going their way. "You take, for instance, the money spent on Telegraph Avenue. But look at the rest of the city where people are saying they want to have their sidewalks repaired. A lot of local taxes continue to increase. Berkeley is an expensive place to live. And, you know, the working people are getting fed up with that. They just need to get organized."