Willie Eaton Quotes

"It’s ’cause we’re a-workin’ together. Depity can’t pick on one fella in this camp. He’s pickin’ on the whole darn camp. An’ he don’t dare. All we got to do is give a yell an’ they’s two hunderd men out. Fella organizin’ for the union was a-talkin’ out on the road. He says we could do that any place. Jus’ stick together. They ain’t raisin’ hell with no two hunderd men. They’re pickin’ on one man."

– John Steinbeck

The Grapes of Wrath, Chapter 26. Willie Eaton explains about the power of unity and organized resistance. He says that police deputies do not pick on groups of organized migrants. That is the secret of the Weedpatch government camp’s success, independence and ability to keep state police out. Willie is chairman of the camp’s entertainment committee. He and Tom Joad and Jule Vitela are having a discussion about organizing the workers into a union.

"If a fella owns a team a horses, he don’t raise no hell if he got to feed ’em when they ain’t workin’. But if a fella got men workin’ for him, he jus’ don’t give a damn. Horses is a hell of a lot more worth than men. I don’ understan’ it."

– John Steinbeck

The Grapes of Wrath, Chapter 26. Willie Eaton lashes out at the broken system whereby migrant workers are exploited and used by employers for cheap labor. Horses are treated better than workers, he claims. They get fed while the families of workers cannot afford to eat. Just before this passage Willie hits at the low wages: "I been out here a year, an’ wages is goin’ right on down. Fella can’t feed his fam’ly on his work now, an’ it’s gettin’ worse all the time. It ain’t gonna do no good to set aroun’ an’ starve. I don’ know what to do."
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