David Giffey

press release: A collection of 110 historic black and white photos, with captions and text in Spanish and English, will be shown for several days in late November at the Spring Green Community Library, 230 E. Monroe Street.

“Struggle for Justice: The Migrant Farm Worker Labor Movement in Wisconsin” will be available for public viewing during regular library hours beginning the afternoon of Friday, November 25, through the morning of Tuesday, November 29. At 2 p.m. Saturday, November 26, photographer and writer David Giffey, Arena, will offer a presentation describing his photos and work in the 1960s and ‘70s with farm workers in Wisconsin and Texas. 

“We invite the community to view the Struggle for Justice exhibit and to learn more about migrant workers through the exhibit and the presentation on November 26th,” said library director Kathleen Kosiec. “The connections to Wisconsin, as well as the historical and cultural significance of these photos, will be of interest to many in our community.”

The photo display was assembled in 1998 by Giffey and has been exhibited in dozens of Wisconsin communities. The exhibit is accompanied by a bilingual book co-authored by photographer Giffey and Jesús Salas, organizer of Obreros Unidos (United Workers), an independent migrant worker labor union in Waushara County in the 1960s. The book, also titled “Struggle for Justice” (Lucha por la Justicia) can be downloaded through the Wisconsin State Historical Society and the Wisconsin Labor History Society websites.

Although the photos were taken 50 years ago, they document the nature of migration, labor, and racial issues prevalent to this day.

Since 1963, David Giffey worked as staff writer, editor, and photographer for daily, weekly, and periodical publications. He edited La Voz Mexicana in Wisconsin, and Ya Mero! in Texas for migrant farm worker labor unions. A U.S. Army combat journalist with the 1st Infantry Division during the Vietnam War, in 2006 he published Long Shadows: Veterans Paths to Peace, winner of the National 2008 Montaigne Award from the Eric Hoffer Book Club. Also a visual artist and muralist, Giffey’s work can be seen in churches and public buildings in the U.S. and abroad. For seven years ending in 2012, he edited Home News, the weekly newspaper in Spring Green. Giffey grew up on a dairy farm in Fond du Lac County. He lives in Iowa County with his wife, Nancy, an artist and teacher.