Heroes and Saints is a play written by playwright Cherrie Moraga. It was first performed in 1992. Although set in the fictional town of McLaughlin, Moraga draws from the real-life case of McFarland, California where high exposure to pesticides caused a cancer cluster in children. Moraga also includes the United Farms Workers, a union organized by migrant farm workers to fight for safer and more dignified living and working conditions. In 1988, Cesar Chavez went on a hunger strike to protest the use of pesticides in industrial farming. Moraga weaves these historical events into her narrative, so that the play is in direct conversation with the political events of the time.
One of the aspects of the play that is most highly praised is the way in which it challenges readers and audience members to see the struggles and inherently hazardous living conditions in which many immigrants are forced to live. Moraga sheds light on how the government and the agricultural industry are complicit in exposing communities to environmental dangers that are clearly detrimental to their health. The play's unapologetic use of both Spanish and English works to portray the experiences of Chicanos in theater authentically. The term Chicano refers to people of Mexican ancestry living in the United States. Heroes and Saints was written as part of the Chicano theater movement, which in turn was part of the broader Chicano movement of the 1960s. This movement fought for the political, economic, and cultural empowerment of Chicano communities.
Heroes and Saints received the Drama-logue Award, the PEN West Award, and the Critics Circle Award. It also cemented Moraga's position as one of the country’s leading Chicana playwrights. She is also an acclaimed poet, essayist, and activist.
