The Man, The Myth, The Legend:
Cesar ChavezBorn in 1927 into a Mexican-
American family residing outside of Yuma, Arizona
Thrust into farm labor after 8th grade graduation in order to help his mother
avoid the fields
Exposed early to the physical, mental and financial toll of
farm work
Motivated by persistence for the pursuit of justice
Driving ForcesDriving Forces
•His father, Librado, and the lesson of perseverance
•Fred Ross, Saul Alinksy, and the CSO
•Desire for education
Librado ChavezLost the family home when it was
sold out from underneath them, but failed to lose hope for the future
Had plans for his children to have the opportunity to go to college
Fred Ross, Saul Alinksy and the CSO
• Fred Ross sought out Chavez
• Mentored him in organizing style
• Ross's strength lay in his ways with people - a trait Chavez focused on learning
• Fred Ross was a student of Saul Alinksy
• Chavez was recruited to Los Angeles to work as part of Saul Alinsky's Community Service organization • Within the CSO,
Chavez learned the core basics of building a union
Education for Self-Empowerment
• Cesar understood that education was the key
to personal freedom
• In assisting the farm workers, he and his
wife also taught them to read and write, a crucial skill to have your desires heard
And in the beginning there
was...NFWA - National Farm Workers Association
Dolores Huerta
After which came....
THE UFWTHE UFW
United Farm Workers
A Successful UnionStarted with house meetings:
addressed problems with people from the community
Training of members:crucial to dedication, focused on legislative process
Developed community allies:churches, student groups, pre-existing organized labor groups
Dissolved race lines:members included those of Dominican, Mexican, Mexican-American, Filipino, African-American, Puerto Rican and Arab decent
Non-Violence: A Way of Life & Protest
Chavez loved animals and people alike, he
sought to be a gentle part of society
Inspired by Gandhi, Cesar incorporated
fasting into his non-violent protests
Organizing for Change
“Compromise was not the UFW way.”
-Fred Ross
Chavez and the UFW fought to make a lasting difference in the community
Gathering thousands of voices on paper, in signatures, and in the flesh, he gave people the power to help
themselves
“The love for justice that is in us is not only the best part of our being but it is also the most true to our
nature.” - Cesar Chavez
CESAR CHAVEZ1927 - 1993