A five year investigation by the New York Times revealed extensive evidence that the admired civil rights activist and founder of the United Farm Workers of America (UFW), Cesar Chavez, sexually assaulted, groomed, and raped several women. The revelation, published by the New York Times on Mar. 18, sparked outrage in the Bay Area, a community where Chavez once worked and lived.
The discovery of Chavez’s abuse has triggered controversy within the community. Many students were shocked by the news. “I think it’s pretty crazy,” freshman Giovanni Barragan said. “I didn’t believe it at first.”
Students also stressed that Chavez’s personal faults shouldn’t overshadow the UFW’s impact, and that classes should strive to cover all sides of Chavez and the UFW.
“I think that [just] because someone does something good, that also doesn’t erase the bad things they’ve done,” junior Ajla Ribic said. “I think it’s good to be aware of both.”
Sophomore Kylie Leeder shared similar sentiments. “I think that we should focus on the bad stuff, because we can’t just idolize everybody that did something big,” she said.
One of the local middle schools, Cesar Chavez Middle School, is named after Chavez. “That’s f*cked up,” sophomore Karla Carlos, who previously attended the middle school, said. “They should change the [middle school’s] name.”
Following this discovery, cities in California have tried to distance themselves from Chavez, a labor leader once revered and admired by many. Events planned for Cesar Chavez Day on Mar. 31 are arranged to be changed or canceled. This Thursday, California Governor Gavin Newsom swiftly signed legislation to change the name of Cesar Chavez Day, a California holiday on Mar. 31, to Farmworkers Day.
In Ethnic Studies, teachers are planning to alter curriculum that focuses heavily on Cesar Chavez. “We’re going to have to address it, the movement’s still important regardless,” social studies teacher Marcus Kevorkyan said.
Social studies teacher Zoe Mahony emphasized the importance of transparency with her students. “I think it’s important not to bury that kind of information. It’s important for students to know that people are complicated. And while he did do a lot of good things, he also seriously abused a lot of the people fighting with him, and that can’t be ignored,” Mahony said.
Ana Murguia and Debra Rojas, daughters of activists in the UFW, both revealed that Chavez had sexually abused them from a very young age. Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the National Farm Workers Association, also came forward, saying she felt pressured to have sex with Chavez at age 30, and six years later, he raped her in his car.
“We should all be learning a lot more about Dolores Huerta. She’s [an] amazing, powerful woman organizer. Did a ton of work just recently, getting the credit she deserves. She was also one of his victims of assault, and I think we should be lifting her up,” Mahony said.
