Grandpa's Short Handled Hoe

The short-handled hoe has been the center point of many injuries and pains for generations of laborers in the fields of America. The 12" to 18" hand tool had caused many back problems over years. Field workers were often forced to stoop for hours while weeding the crops. Some objected to lengthening the handle because with the short-handled hoe, the laborer could be seen to be working by a handled hoe, the laborer could be seen to be working by a supervisor from a distance. With much advocacy from César Chávez, Dolores Huerta and others, the short-handled hoe was banned by the California Supreme Court in 1975. The legacy of the "cortito" or the "diablito" is of cruelty and the suppression of civil rights. Many elders who were forced into physical stoop labor have memories and pains from this cruel devise.