Coors Boycott: The Influence of the Chicano Movement

Letters of Support

The letters of support included messages of "full support" and endorsement for the cause. These letters also often declared the permission from the supporters for the Teamsters Coors Beer Boycott to "use [their] name in advertisements and leaflets in support of the Coors boycott." The Teamsters Coors Beer Boycott group in San Francisco, California welcomed letters of support from Vietnam Veterans Against the War Winter Soldier Organization, Union W.A.G.E. (women's alliance to gain equality), American GI Forum of the United States, M.E.Ch.A. (Movimineto Estudiantil Chicana/o de Aztlan), the Black Panther Party, members of the LGBT community, and others.

Several of the official support letters included greetings and endings written in Spanish. For example, the Chicano Federation of San Diego County finished with "Gracias (thanks)", M.E.Ch.A. began with "Queridos Hermanos (My dear brothers/friends)", and ended with a signature from Regina Sanchez "Su Hermana (Your sister)", while others included encouraging words such as "Venceremos (we will defeat/overcome)" and "Adelante (carry on/go forward)".

The diversity among the groups and individuals who supported the boycott of Coors beer shows just how universal the outrage of discrimination is between differing marginalized groups of the United States; or as the support letter of La Confederacion De La Raza Unida put it, "A struggle to one is a struggle to all".

The letters of support that came in from all around the country certainly created a boost in morale. Once the boycott against the Coors company had far-reaching and official support, the knowledge of progress gave the protesters here in Colorado a stronger point to argue. They could now better convince themselves that their voices were being heard and - most importantly - it could convince Coors that the protester's voices were being heard.

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