Luis Zapata Oral History Interview: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

The oral history consists of six digital files: 2011.174.95.1a, 2011.174.95.1b, 2011.174.95.1c, 2011.174.95.1d, 2011.174.95.1e, and 2011.174.95.1f.

Luis Zapata describes his childhood in Orange County, California, and how he came to join the labor movement as a college student at San Jose State University. He discusses the organizing work he did with the United Farm Workers and how he ended up moving to Cleveland, Mississippi, for four years where he organized for the Mississippi Freedom Labor Union and helped to register voters with the Council of Federated Organizations (COFO) and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). Zapata also discusses his later involvement in the congressional campaign of Mike Espy as well as his participation in international movements for human rights.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: June 27, 2013
• Created by: Civil Rights History Project, American, founded 2009
• Interview of: Luis Zapata, 1944 - 2015
• Interviewed by: Dr. Emilye Crosby Ph. D., American
• Subject of: San José State University, American, founded 1857
• Subject of: United Farm Workers of America, American, founded 1962
• Subject of: Mississippi Freedom Labor Union, American, founded 1965
• Subject of: Council of Federated Organizations, founded 1962
• Subject of: Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, American, 1960 - 1970s
• Type: video recordings
• Type: oral histories
• Type: digital media - born digital
• Medium: digital
• Dimensions: Duration: 2 hr., 2 min., 1 sec.
• Dimensions: Total: 199.86 GB
• Place collected: Silver Spring, Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: Orange County, California, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: San Jose, Santa Clara County, California, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: Cleveland, Bolivar County, Mississippi, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Activism
• Topic: Agriculture
• Topic: American South
• Topic: American West
• Topic: Associations and institutions
• Topic: Civil Rights
• Topic: Education
• Object number: 2011.174.95.1a-f
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in partnership with the American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: © Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture and The American Folklife Center, Library of Congress Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.