Page 16 - IAV Digital Magazine #494

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Who is Cesar Chavez ?
Cesar Chavez (born César Estrada Chávez, March 31, 1927 – April 23, 1993) was an American labor leader, community organ- izer, and Latino American civil rights activist. Along with Dolores Huerta, he co-founded the National Farm Workers Association (NFWA), which
later merged to become the United Farm Workers (UFW) union. Ideologically, his world-view com- bined leftist poli- tics with Roman Catholic social teachings.
Born in Yuma, Arizona, to a Mexican American family, Chavez began his working life as
a manual laborer before spending two years in the United States Navy. Relocating to California, where he mar- ried, he got involved in the Community Service Organization (CS O), through which he helped labor- ers register to vote. In 1959, he became the CSO's national
director, a posi- tion based in Los Angeles. In 1962, he left the CSO to co-found the NFWA, based
in Delano, California. Through this, he launched an insurance scheme, credit union, and news- paper for farm- workers. Later that decade he began organizing strikes among farmworkers, most notably
the Delano grape strike of 1965–70. Influenced by the ideals of Indian independence lea der Mahatma Gandhi, he emphasized the use of direct
but nonviolent tactics to pres- sure farm owners into granting strik- ers' demands. He imbued his cam- paign with Catholic symbol- ism, including public proces- sions, masses, and fasts. He called for a national boycott of California grapes, bringing him to nationwide attention. Critics within the union raised concerns
about his strong personal control of the movement, the growing per- sonality
cult among sup- porters, and the purges of those deemed disloyal.
By the late 1970s, his tactics had forced grow- ers to recognize the UFW as the bargaining agent for 50,000 field workers in California and Florida. Chavez's activities were strongly promoted by the American labor movement, which was eager to enroll Hispanic members, as well as leftist groups such as the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. He also campaigned for the Democratic
Party politician R obert F. Kennedy. In later life, he also became an advocate for veg- anism. Membership of the UFW dwin- dled in the 1980s and Chavez moved into real- estate develop- ment. Although
the UFW faltered a few years after Chavez died in 1993, his work led to numerous improvements for union laborers.
Chavez was a controversial fig- ure. During his life, many farm- owners consid- ered him a com- munist subversive and the Federal Bureau of Investigation mon itored him. He nevertheless became an icon for organized labor and leftist politics, as well as for the Hispanic American com- munity; he posthumously became a "folk saint" among Mexican Americans. His birthday, March 31, is a federal commemorative holiday (Cesar Chavez Day) in several U.S. states, while many schools, streets, and parks are named after him, and in 1994, he posthumously received the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
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