The two newest titles in the Movements and Resistance series spotlight often-overlooked repression in U.S. history and the individuals who fought for justice. Once again, the graphic nonfiction format features boxed text with narration, imagined dialogue that adds a storylike effect, and action-packed comics that depict the tensions and uprisings. The 1899 Newsboys' Strike opens with working conditions of the newsboys who sold newspapers in New York City. Not only were they forced to buy the newspapers they wished to sell, but the country's two biggest newspapers refused to buy back unsold copies. The book explains how a price hike by the powerful owners, William Randolph Hearst and Joseph Pulitzer, ultimately pushed the newsies to go on strike until Hearst and Pulitzer finally met their demands for fair prices. While considerable attention has been given to Mexican migrant workers in the early to mid-twentieth century, The Delano Grape Strike describes Filipino workers, also known as Manongs, of the same time period.
It focuses on Larry Itliong and his years-long crusade for better working conditions for Filipino grape harvesters. This volume recounts his coordinated strike efforts with Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta and how Itliong's influence was ultimately overshadowed by Chavez's prominence in the news coverage. Concluding facts in each book enhance the value of this important series.