Communities rebrand César Chavez Day as abuse allegations taint his legacy

William Brangham:

Just two weeks ago, cities across the country were finalizing plans for celebrations of Cesar Chavez day. Then an investigative report from The New York Times revealed allegations that Chavez sexually abused women and girls for years, including Dolores Huerta, with whom he co-founded the United Farm Workers union, or UFW.

Now many of those cities are canceling those plans, and a day that was once a celebration has become a painful reminder of his now tarnished legacy.

Stephanie Sy reports.

Stephanie Sy:

On a day that once celebrated him, communities are now moving swiftly to distance themselves from disgraced labor leader Cesar Chavez, who died in 1993.

A New York Times investigation this month uncovered evidence that Chavez sexually abused women and girls for years while leading the farmworkers movement.

Luviah Robles, Student, San Francisco State University:

Hearing about these allegations is definitely a hard thing to digest, but it's also a hard thing to ignore.

Stephanie Sy:

Cities like Milwaukee and Austin canceled celebrations entirely, while others emphasized the movement over the man. In Denver, where a Chavez statue was dismantled, activists instead celebrated Si Se Puede Day, in English, Yes We Can.

And the patch of grass that bore Chavez's name for two decades had a new handwritten sign, Dolores Huerta Park, after the woman who co-founded the United Farm Workers union. Huerta herself, now 95, was revealed by The New York Times to have been raped by Chavez.

Geraldo Cadava, Northwestern University:

I'm hoping that, even though this is really difficult news and devastating news to absorb, that it might give some new life to the farmworker movement to get out from under his shadow.

Stephanie Sy:

Geraldo Cadava is a professor of history and Latino studies at Northwestern University.

Geraldo Cadava:

I think historians have already made the move toward recognizing that the United Farm Workers was a broader social movement. I think what placing Dolores Huerta at the foreground of the movement now does, on the one hand, it acknowledges women's contributions and the idea that women have always been part of the union and were central to its successes.

I guess I would only caution against just simply replacing Chavez with Huerta and lionizing her, coming to lionize her in the same way that we lionized Cesar Chavez,because to replace one hero with another hero could also stunt the movement in some ways, I think.

Woman:

Women who speak up.

Stephanie Sy:

Last week, both Minnesota and California, which was the first state to recognize Chavez's birthday as a holiday, quickly passed new laws renaming March 31 Farmworkers Day.

State Sen. Suzette Martinez Valladares (D-CA):

This is not about one narrative. It's about honoring generations of sacrifice, of resilience and hope.

Stephanie Sy:

And the UFW itself canceled its planned events, calling the allegations against Chavez shocking and indefensible.

Taken together, it marked a nearly unthinkable fall from grace for the late civil rights icon, once mentioned in the same breath as Martin Luther King Jr. and whose name and image adorn schools, street signs and murals nationwide, those tributes, once a point of pride, now a source of pain in cities like Los Angeles.

Raul Claros, Founder, California Rising:

Cesar Chavez Avenue needs to be replaced. I have a 10-year-old little girl who lives in that building on Cesar Chavez, who today, after school, I'm going to have to sit down around the dinner table and explain to her why we're out here doing this, what the rumors, the allegations and the facts are.

Stephanie Sy:

There, the Board of Supervisors has now voted to erase Chavez's name from county streets and buildings. Phoenix has done the same.

Betty Guardado is a member of the city council.

Betty Guardado, Phoenix City Councilmember:

For us to be able to act on this as fast as we did, it just means that we're not going to tolerate this type of behavior and that we're going to continue to hold everyone accountable, that we will continue to lift the victims, that we will continue to do the right thing as a city.

Stephanie Sy:

Still, what's next will likely be tougher than removing street signs, a full reckoning with Chavez's legacy, both the vital role he played in advancing civil rights and the disturbing truth of his sexual abuse.

In a letter to the public this afternoon, the Cesar Chavez Foundation said: "During this time of painful internal reflection, we do not want to lose sight of the very real threats our community currently faces. We cannot let this moment fracture what so many worked so hard to build," a sentiment echoed by the current president of the UFW, Teresa Romero.

Teresa Romero, President, United Farm Workers:

You know, we have in one hand Cesar Chavez, the man who committed horrible acts that we're not going to justify, that we don't condone.

On the other hand, we have Cesar Chavez, the organizer, who brought thousands and thousands of people together to be able to work for farmworkers. And, unfortunately, those two things came from the same man.

Stephanie Sy:

For the "PBS News Hour," I'm Stephanie Sy.