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By Raul A. Reyes
When she was little, Julie Chavez Rodriguez's parents joked that her first word was "assemble".
"From the beginning, I remember well, we helped to collect packages for the United Farm Worker's conventions or go to marches and pickets," said the granddaughter of the United Farm Worker. icon of civil and labor rights, Cesar Chavez. . "
For Rodriguez, Sunday, Cesar Chavez's birthday day, is a day of reflection on his grandfather's enduring legacy. Chavez's popular advocacy has exacerbated the plight of farm workers and made him the country's first Latin American leader.
Chavez, a naval veteran and father of eight, was born in Arizona on March 31, 1927. In 1966, he founded United Farm Workers with Dolores Huerta and began lobbying California agricultural producers for a decent wage and safer conditions for field workers.
Chavez resorted to boycotts, strikes and fasting – innovative techniques for the time – to draw attention to the "causa" (cause) of agricultural workers' rights. In the 1970s, millions of Americans supported the boycott of its consumers with grapes and lettuce.
"Who would believe that the poorest of the poorest could attack California's most powerful industry and take it away? My father, said Chavez's son, Paul Chavez, president and president of the Cesar Chavez Foundation. "His faith in people inspired them to believe that they could overcome considerable hardships."
Chavez's activism helped improve the working conditions of California farm workers, as well as a 1975 law allowing them to unionize and bargain collectively. He died in 1993 at the age of 66 and received many posthumous honors. In 2014, President Barack Obama declared his birthday commemorative federal holiday. Across the country, his name is in schools, streets and stock markets.
The organizing tactics of the late civil rights defender continue to influence the labor movement and the new generation. Inspired by his grandfather's activism, Rodriguez worked at the Obama White House and switched from director to Senator Kamala Harris, D-Calif. To a new role as co-national policy director of her 2020 presidential campaign.
"For me, he looked like a real-life superhero, someone who saved the world for a minute, then he took us on a hike and taught us how to make musical instruments out of old cans and ropes, "Rodriguez said. considers himself lucky to have known the personal side of Chavez. "When he was with us (his grandchildren), he was very entertaining, loving and playful.He had a sense of extraordinary humor."
A historical heritage, although mixed
"If you look at my father's life, he has had more defeats than victories. But he believed that you only lose when you give up and stop fighting, "said Paul Chavez. This is a sentiment he sees as particularly relevant to civil rights officials during Trump's time.
Maurice Rafael Magaña, assistant professor of American-Mexican studies at the University of Arizona, noted that the impact of Chavez went beyond the movement of agricultural workers. "The level of recognition and visibility that it has in the popular imagination is really important because Mexicans and Americans of Mexican origin are sort of wiped out of most of the national conversations that we have in this country. "
Yet with Chavez having evolved to become an icon, Magaña explained, her story may be simplified.
"Although it is nice to put it (Chavez) on a stamp or on a building, it is important to remember him to recognize how he has formed coalitions, the way his faith inspired his protests not -violent and his belief in the dignity of all people, "said Magaña.
Magaña also pointed out that Dolores Huerta deserved the same level of recognition as Chavez, since they spent years leading the farm workers movement together.
However, many of the gains from this movement have been short-lived. Nationally, an analysis by Pew in 2018 found that less than 10% of farm workers were unionized. Among California farm workers, unionization rates have been declining since the late 1970s. While California's agriculture industry is booming, much of its labor force is now undocumented and fears fight for his rights.
"Chavez's failure to create a sustainable trade union for farm workers has prevented many advances and the conditions in the fields have further deteriorated," said Miriam Pawel, author of "The Crusades of Cesar Chavez".
"This failure is a tragedy," said Pawel.
On the plus side, Pawel said that Chavez had had a huge impact on the lives of farm workers. His movement was unique because he attracted the public by appealing to his moral sense.
Hector E. Sanchez, executive director of the Labor Council for Development of Latin America, said that Chavez 's organizational style remains relevant.
"The best organization is at the local level, one-to-one, listening to the workers and learning about the conditions of their daily lives," Sanchez said. "For me, Chavez is a source of inspiration because he showed us what a lawyer is."
Sanchez understands that some organizers may feel discouraged by the Trump administration and the Janus Supreme Court ruling. In this 2018 case, the High Court ruled that civil servants could not be forced to pay fees to support their unions.
But Sanchez remains optimistic about the future of the Latino labor movement. "Our community has responded by organizing, resisting and adopting the most important tools of civic participation."
Opening the way
It is not difficult to see how Chavez's strategies continue to resonate. Huerta and his rallying cry of Sí, se puede have been adopted by the immigration reform movement and the English translation (yes, we can) has become the slogan of Obama's presidential campaign.
Many of the tactics invented by Chavez have been adapted by groups such as the Immokalee Workers' Coalition, the Justice for Janitors Campaign, and the New York "Carwasheros".
Eli Cuna is the national director of United We Dream, the largest immigrant youth network in the country. She includes Chavez in the volunteer training program and members of his group. "Our organizational style, which is based on building relationships, is rooted in the movement of farm workers."
Although new members of her group are often unaware of Chavez's contributions, Cuna believes that passing on her lessons is essential to shaping the next generation of leaders.
"We must be rooted in the legacy of the warriors we come from, because we must now be the agents of change to get things done," she said. For United We Dream, it means being inclusive of women, the LGBTQ community and people of color.
Cuna sees a clear distinction between Chavez's fight against injustice and the ongoing work of United We Dream.
"The farm workers movement concerned everyone, the village, a whole community that was taking a stand and fighting for a better life," she added. "It's the same commitment we have in our network and in our movement."
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