Senator Jeff Bingaman recently wrote this great letter of support for Juntos en La Union and our efforts to preserve the union hall. Senator Bingaman is a Silver High graduate and has spent the better part of three decades representing New Mexico in the US Senate. We sincerely thank him for his support and service to the people of New Mexico.

Letters of support continue to come into Juntos en la Union and our efforts to preserve the Local 890, and the Wisconsin Labor History Society has added their voice to the chorus! Thank you!

The Bayard City Council has voiced its support for Juntos en la Union, and our goal to see the Mine Mill local #890 preserved. We still face many hurdles in this quest, including convincing the Steelworkers that the Hall is worthy of preservation and that our cause is worthy of support. But, like union workers on the picket lines, we are tough, resilient, and we plan on sticking it out until we meet our goal.

Here is the first 9 minutes of the movie inspired by the Empire Zinc Strike, Salt of the Earth

We are a society for the preservation of The Mine Mill and Smelter Workers Local 890 headquarters located in Bayard, New Mexico. The local 890 headquarters was at the center of the 1950-1952 Empire Zinc Strike, called to achieve equality in wages and benefits for the Mexican American workers, who were treated and paid poorly compared to their Anglo coworkers. Because of a Taft-Hartley injunction against the miners, the Ladies Auxiliary 209 took to the picket lines since the injunction only prohibited “men from picketing”. After more than a year, the strike was finally won by the workers, and the story of their struggle for equality and the valiant efforts of the Ladies Auxiliary 209 captured the attention of blacklisted Hollywood producers, who turned it into the movie Salt of the Earth.

We believe that the union hall, because of this historic context, should be recognized as a landmark, so that the struggle of the workers of the Local 890 and the Ladies Auxiliary 209 against racism, sexism, and unjust working conditions will never be forgotten.