Carmen Velasquez

This week’s #FeministFriday is Carmen Velasquez, an admirable woman who dedicated her life to advocating on behalf of the migrant community. When she was a child, she was affected by polio. While being treated for the disease, she spent a majority of her youth in hospitals observing the nuns and social workers assisting patients. This experience is what first sparked her interest in advocacy. In 1941, Carmen and her Husband, Albert, moved to Indiana and started their family. Her husband was a prisoner of war and fought the Nazis in France during World War II. While he was away, she raised their 10 children and discovered her calling to help migrant farmworkers get access to the resources they needed to succeed. She did so by advocating for better working and living conditions, and identifying their material and spiritual needs. She later helped found the Associated Migrant Opportunity Services organization. Her passion for migrant lives fueled many activist efforts such as a March on the Indiana state capitol during the 1970’s.