The term 'Steinbeck Migrant' refers to the people who were displaced during the Great Depression and traveled to California in search of work. The term is derived from John Steinbeck's novel, The Grapes of Wrath, which tells the story of the Joad family, a fictional family of Okies, as they travel to California. The term 'Okie' is a four-letter word used to describe these migrants, and is derived from the state of Oklahoma, where many of them originated.