An exhibit showcasing Latinos in the Oregon wine industry is on display at the Linfield College Nicholson Library.
The exhibit, presented through Friday, Nov. 15, is the result of summer research by Sharon Bailey Glasco, associate professor of history; Rachael Woody, Linfield archivist; and Linfield students Julian Adoff and Lydia Heins. It traces the variety of roles that Latino workers play in the growing, harvest and production of wine in the Willamette Valley, and also touches on the relationship between vineyard owners and their employees, according to Bailey Glasco.
“The emphasis is to not only capture the importance of Latino labor to this industry, but to also highlight a few who have gone ‘beyond the vines’ so to speak, into areas of winemaking and production that we don’t necessarily consider typical,” Bailey Glasco said.
The project represents the initial stages of an emerging research agenda on Latinos and Latinas in the Oregon wine industry specifically, and on Mexican migrant labor in the Willamette Valley/Pacific Northwest more broadly. While there is a rich historiography on Mexican migrant labor in the West, it is more focused on the migrant experience in California and Texas. The research itself will become part of the permanent collection of the Oregon Wine History Archive housed at Linfield.
The exhibit was made possible through a CERC research grant from the Linfield Center for the Northwest, as well as support from the Yamhill County Cultural Coalition. It debuted at the International Pinot Noir Celebration (IPNC) in July, and has been on display at Nicholson Library this semester. It will move to The Willamette Heritage Center in Salem in January.
The exhibit is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Bailey Glasco at 503-883-2306, sglasco@linfield.edu or visit digitalcommons.linfield.edu/owhp_latino/.
