Organized Labor

The late Sala and Phill Burton Champions of working families, organized labor and human rights

The Center is planning to hold a day-long tribute to the Burtons on June 1st to commemorate their accomplishments at Upper Fort Mason in San Francisco. Initial plans call for a forum on KQED from 9-11:00, with panel discussions in the afternoon and a reception and dinner in the evening. The host committee will include Walter Johnson, Secretary Treasurer Emeritus of the SF Labor Council; Dolores Huerta former President of the United Farm Workers; Judge Harry Low; former Mayor Willie L. Brown Jr.; Agar Jaicks; Jane Morrison Chair of the San Francisco Central Democratic Party, and Larry Fahn past President of the Sierra Club. Invitations to many labor and community leaders will be forthcoming. The Tribute will honor the vision, leadership and accomplishments of Phillip and Sala Burton and will also generate funding for the continued operation of the center. The event will promote the idea of maintaining a safe and clean environment for future generations based on sustainable development. The Center also promotes the idea of global citizenship by promoting tolerance of other people’s cultures and customs.

The Committee plans to solicit the support of the international community including the Consul Generals of Egypt, France, Ireland and Japan. Invitations will go out soon to Former President Jimmy Carter, Mary Robinson the former President of Ireland and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, and to Keichiro Matsuura the Director-General of the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization, (UNESCO).

The Tribute on June 1st will feature a panel discussion in the great meadow at Upper Fort Mason near the statue of Phillip Burton. Confirmed panelists will include Judge Harry Low, Dolores Huerta, and former President of the United Farm Workers and Edgar Wayburn MD. Other invited speakers are former Mayor Willie Brown and Richard Trumpka, Secretary Treasurer of the AFL-CIO and former President of the United Mine Workers.

To illustrate Phil Burton’s commitment to civil rights, Bill Hough pulled some quotes from the book by John Jacobs, “A Rage for Justice.”

At the age of 20 in 1946, Phil Burton became a leader in the Young Democrats in San Francisco immediately after his return to San Francisco, after graduating from the University of Southern California. “On election night in November 1952 Burton took several Young Democrats to the housing projects in Hunter’s Point to pass out coffee and donuts to voters. Because there were only a few precincts, people were waiting in line a block long to vote. Just as they arrived, a precinct worker came outside and announced that the polls were about to close, shutting out some 150 black voters.”

“I’ll take care of this, said Burton, who disappeared to make a strategic phone call and scream at the white precinct workers. Moments later, he returned to announce that everyone would be allowed to vote no matter how long it took. Harvey Matthews, a black longshoreman who witnessed the incident, said that Phillip Burton’s political base in the black community began that night. Shortly thereafter, Matthews and other activists formed the ‘Twentieth Century Democratic Club’ and Burton was a frequent speaker.” Phillip Burton was subsequently elected Vice-President of the San Francisco chapter of the NAACP. He also supported Willie Brown in his initial run for the assembly in 1962.

Courtesy of Bill Hough, Founder - Phillip & Sala Burton Center for Human Rights

Note: We will continue to update the progress of the Center over the next few months.