Lights flickered in the backyard of a Highland Park home, where three farm workers had gathered for an impromptu stage on the inaugural Farmworkers Day: a newly renamed holiday that has upended all Cesar Chavez Day celebrations in the state.
The somber event Tuesday night was one of a few gatherings centering farm workers in the Los Angeles area that followed the bombing investigation. new York Times, It exposed allegations that labor leader César Chávez had sexually assaulted two underage girls in the 1970s, as well as his fellow United Farm Workers of America co-founder, Dolores Huerta.
“I’m still processing it,” said Flor Martínez Zaragoza, chief executive and founder of celebration nationA non-profit organization dedicated to empowering the indigenous Latino community across California and is the host of this event. “I stand with the survivors.”
Founder Flor Martínez Zaragoza hosts a gathering for farmworkers and community members on Tuesday.
(Gina Frazee/Los Angeles Times)
In the wake of the New York Times report, many government and city officials sought to distance themselves from Chávez’s newly tainted legacy. He started by renaming it Cesar Chávez Day; Held annually on March 31, it was authorized as a U.S. federal memorial holiday by President Obama in 2014.
The community took action to remove Chavez. statues from A chair In San Fernando, murals were painted in his memory throughout Los Angeles. A unanimous vote was taken to withdraw his name. From street signs in Fresno.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass signed a proclamation March 19 to turn Cesar Chavez Day into Farmers Day in the city. And till Thursday, California lLegislature With the aim of acknowledging the immense contribution of agricultural workers, it was pursued. This change was immediately approved by Governor Gavin Newsom.
Still, Martínez Zaragoza is worried that being so hasty in dismantling Chávez’s legacy could completely erase the history of the United Farm Workers movement, which has helped secure labor rights and better job protections for farm workers since its founding in 1962.
“When they remove statues, who holds people accountable to make sure they are putting up statues of farmworkers?” asked Martínez Zaragoza. “If they’re deleting some entries from history textbooks, who’s making sure they’re not erasing the entire farmworker movement?”
As host of the night, Martínez wanted to center the voices of Zaragoza farm workers and how they felt about the collective community move to erase Chávez from history. As it turns out, ignoring the once-beloved Labor leader isn’t easy for some people.
“It’s sad to see what’s happening. My respect to Dolores Huerta. As women, we have to support her, right?” said Xochitl Nunez, a community leader and UFW member from Orosi, California. “I have respect for him, but you can’t judge a dead person. You can only judge a living person.”
As a survivor of sexual assault, Núñez feels for the women involved, but worries that painting over Chávez’s image overshadows the impact of his nonviolent, direct-action protests that helped the UFW secure contracts for more than 10,000 grape pickers in the 1970s.
“It saddens me to hear someone from the city complain or say rude things. What do city people know if they’ve never been to the fields?” Nunez shouted to the group. “They’ve never been in the fields where I’m working under 116 degrees. I need water, I need shade, I need a bathroom — and thanks to their fight, we have these things.”
The quick action to rename Cesar Chávez Day also surprised Núñez given other bills in the state, such as Rural Farmworker Women’s Health Act — which aims to provide free menstrual products to female farm workers in California — despite being introduced by David Tangipa and Juan Alanis in February, has not been quickly approved by legislators.
When it comes to getting menstrual products, Nunez said, “We’re not across the street from the pharmacies, sometimes we’re an hour away.”
Although many news headlines have focused on Chávez’s allegations of sexual abuse, these farmworkers felt compelled to focus their attention on current issues – such as on-the-job injuries and farmworker deaths. according to National Institute for Occupational Safety and HealthBetween 2021 and 2022, there were 21,020 injuries in agricultural production, leading to several days away from work; It is also common to underreport injuries.
Núñez described how once when she was picking cherries a metal rod penetrated her shoe and leg, resulting in two surgeries that put her at risk of possible amputation of her leg.
“It was so traumatic that they told me I needed to get PTSD treatment similar to people who come back from war,” Nunez said. “Many of us get mangled, but it’s not just our bodies. Our souls get mangled. We survive such a disease. I wish there was an eraser that could make whatever we pass through disappear.”
A woman walks past the Watts/Century Latino organization in Los Angeles on March 20 after mural artists replaced a portrait of Mr. Alec Chavez with a portrait of Dolores Huerta.
(Christina House/Los Angeles Times)
His son Alejandro Martínez, a 22-year-old veteran and farmworker, also described the injuries to his body: “Part of my spine is now crooked. My ankle, I can’t even walk without limping. I can’t go to physical therapy right now because they told me I have to wait. I can’t even get medical help,” he said.
Carmen Obeso has struggled with her vision for years, alleging she was exposed to chemical pesticides while working in strawberry fields in Ventura County.
“Whatever they give you in compensation, it’s not something that ever goes away,” Obeso said.
When she first arrived in Oxnard, Obeso did not know much about Chávez’s legacy, except for a song dedicated to him by Los Tigres del Norte in 1989. But after her life-changing incident, she went into deep depression. Learning about the United Farm Workers movement gave him the strength to carry it forward.
Obeso said, “I met a lot of people who knew Cesar Chavez and a lot of people are hurt by what he did.” “But I’m not someone who can judge.”
