Memory in Cloth

1986. Photograph by Jack Miller, courtesy of LaborArts and the 21st Century ILGWU Heritage Fund.

Members of ILGWU Local 23-25 who belonged to the Chinese and the Hispanic committees of the Coalition of Labor Union Women made this remarkable quilt for Jay Mazur on his election as ILGWU’s International President.

Produced under the direction of organizer Kathy Andrade, it starts with immigrants arriving at our shores, a garment worker in front of the burning Triangle Shirtwaist Factory, and a demonstration in front of the U.S. Capitol building with signs reading “Amnesty for Undocumented Workers,” “Roll Back Imports and Save Garment Jobs Now,” and “Solidarity” in Polish, Spanish, Chinese and English.

The second row shows a sewing machine embedded in a map of the U.S. under the slogan “A Fair Share for America,” from a campaign for fair wages; a plea for workers to “Register and Vote’; and a “plug” for the union’s education classes.

The third row features a collage of symbols representing union cultural activities such as dance, drama, bowling, painting; a poem about Local 23-25 with logos from the Chinese Committee of CLUW and the Hispanic Committee of CLUW; and the union’s immigration project. The last row includes a scene from the 1982 garment center rallies, a union day care center, and the ILGWU Chorus.

The quilt represents an extraordinary example of women of diverse ethnic backgrounds using their after-work hours to make memories in cloth that demonstrate the union’s potential as a source of cultural achievement.