Union leader & Labor organizer

Name: Cesar Chavez
Item: Cesar Chavez
Author: Marilyn

A life dedicated to improving wages and working conditions for farm workers.

Cesar Chavez (1927 –1993) was an American labor leader and civil rights activist. With Dolores Huerta, he co-founded the National Farm Workers Association, later renamed the United Farm Workers union in 1962.

Originally a Mexican-American farm worker, Chavez became the best known Latino American civil rights activist, and was deeply tied to the American labor movement. His public-relations approach to unionism and aggressive but nonviolent tactics made the farm workers’ struggle a moral cause.

By the late 1970s, his tactics had forced growers to recognize the UFW as the bargaining agent for 50,000 field workers in California and Florida.

Chavez is recognized for organized labor and leftist politics, symbolizing support for Hispanic workers based on grass roots organizing. He is also famous for popularizing the slogan “Sí, se puede” (Spanish for “Yes, one can”), which was adopted as the 2008 campaign slogan of Barack Obama.

His day is commemorated to promote service to the community and educational programs to honor his enduring legacy.

“Chavez left a legacy as an educator, environmentalist, and a civil rights leader. And his cause lives on. As farm workers and laborers across America continue to struggle for fair treatment and fair wages, we find strength in what Cesar Chavez accomplished so many years ago. And we should honor him for what he’s taught us about making America a stronger, more just, and more prosperous nation. That’s why I support the call to make Cesar Chavez’s birthday a national holiday. It’s time to recognize the contributions of this American icon to the ongoing efforts to perfect our union.”
Senator Barack Obama March 31, 2008

President Obama reiterated his support “Cesar Chavez’s legacy provides lessons from which all Americans can learn” and on March 28, 2014 proclaimed March 31 as national Cesar Chavez Day.

Cesar Chavez

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