Sacramento, CA — Taking action ahead of the upcoming March 31 holiday, the state of California has officially renamed Cesar Chavez Day to Farmworkers Day.
It was approved in the California Senate with bipartisan support on Thursday and signed by Governor Gavin Newsom shortly after.
The change comes after allegations became public last week about Chavez sexually abusing girls and women during his time building the farmworker labor movement in the 1960’s. Among those who went public was Delores Huerta, who co-led the movement. We reported back in 2014 that Huerta was the keynote speaker at the Mother Lode Martin Luther King Jr. celebration in Sonora.
The co-chairs of the California Hispanic Legislative Caucus, Republicans Suzette Martinez Valladares and Kate Sanchez, have put out a joint statement.
It reads, “We were proud to lead on this issue, calling for this change alongside our colleagues and working collaboratively with legislative leadership to move it forward. This was a shared effort grounded in truth, respect, and a commitment to getting it right. Today belongs to every man, woman, and child whose labor built this state’s agricultural heritage and whose story deserves to be fully told. We have more to do, including updating the education code to ensure we are elevating and celebrating the right legacy.”
