March 31, formerly César Chávez Day, is now Farmworkers Day in California : NPR

DON GONYEA, HOST:

For 25 years, March 31 has been a state holiday in California. It’s the birthday of Cesar Chavez, the Latin American labor leader. But last week, state lawmakers voted to rename the holiday. This Tuesday and in years to come, what was César Chávez Day will be known as Farm Workers Day. This follows a recent New York Times investigation documenting allegations of sexual abuse and assault against Chavez. Oliver Rosales joins us now. He is a professor of history at Bakersfield College, where he focuses on Chicano and California history. Thanks for being with us.

OLIVER ROSALES: Thank you, Don. I’m happy to be here.

GONYEA: I mentioned that you teach at Bakersfield College in California’s Central Valley, but more specifically, you’re actually on the college’s campus in Delano. It was in this city that Chávez, in 1962, co-founded what became the United Farm Workers union, with Dolores Huerta. I wonder what it was like going to teach after news of these allegations broke.

ROSALES: Yeah. When the article broke, I read it as soon as it came out at 7 a.m., and it was shocking. It was… you could feel the reverberations. I actually had to talk about the history of farm labor that day, and we kind of pivoted and looked at not only the article, but also the statement that Dolores Huerta put out. I think for the students it was disconcerting. There was a lot to process, and I think they’re still processing it.

GONYEA: What was that moment like when you walked into the classroom on the day of these allegations? Do you take a deep breath and…

ROSALES: Yeah. It was a strange moment. I think I was happy to be in Delano at that time. And for a lot of kids, a lot of students, you know, they don’t necessarily think that their stories matter, that their parents’ stories, their grandparents’ stories, matter. And so it’s particularly difficult for them because, you know, that’s where they may have seen themselves in the program, in the history of the farmworker movement. So it’s very discouraging for them, but I think the idea that the farmworker movement has always been more than just one man’s story is very important, right? And that’s what we need to kind of lean into, I think, as you know, educators and as people who care about this story, it’s like decentering this hero narrative.

GONYEA: César Chavez, who died in 1993, was, as you just said, revered. But now California has already quickly renamed this holiday, as well as many schools and streets. The murals are being painted. A prominent Chavez statue in Sacramento was unceremoniously wrapped in black plastic. What do you think of all this?

ROSALES: You know, I think for the Latino community in particular, it’s kind of a moment of mental crisis, and we have to kind of deal with the trauma because it’s hard to see, you know, statues falling or murals falling. But in the world of historians, Chavez’s legacy has been under study for some time. But there is a disconnect, for example, between how historians talk about Chavez’s legacy and how the public does. And so I think that’s kind of what we’re seeing happening right now is that these worlds are kind of being connected.

But I think it also highlights the need to highlight, again, the diversity of leaders coming out of the farmworker movement, like Larry Itliong, for example. The Philippine Historical Society was instrumental in promoting Assembly Bill 123 in California, which included Philippine history in the school curriculum, right? And they were the ones who started the grape strike in Delano. So perhaps, again, this could be used as an opportunity to highlight Filipino contributions, as well as the wide range of leaders who came and were trained by the farmworker movement.

GONYEA: Do you see a way to keep the history of farmworker organizing in the public eye without Chavez? I mean, there have been suggestions to rename things for union leader Dolores Huerta. And just to remind listeners, she is among those accusing Chavez of rape.

ROSALES: Yeah. I think it was – it was very difficult – this testimony. But I was also extremely proud of Dolores for having the courage to break his silence. I have seen the good work she has done with her foundation in Bakersfield for over two decades and I know how difficult it must be to share this very painful story. So I told my students that this is a beacon of hope, right? And even in her interviews with Maria Hinojosa, you know, she talked about taking advantage of the present moment, and let’s talk about sexual violence, let’s talk about patriarchy and sexual abuse against men and boys. These are questions we need to talk about.

GONYEA: And I wonder if you’re thinking differently about your own teaching, perhaps, as we approach the next semester?

ROSALES: Yeah. I mean, I’ve always tried to teach a complex history of agricultural labor, particularly in Kern County, which has the legacy of, you know, Steinbeck’s “The Grapes of Wrath,” and, you know, in Allensworth, California, which was an independent black colony founded in the early 20th century. Thus, for the Central Valley of California, the history of agricultural labor has always been multiracial. It has always been complex. And that was the importance of the United Farm Workers: bringing together different ethnic and racial groups who had opposed each other to lower the price of labor. So even if Chávez is moved or removed from the school curriculum, this story remains the same. You know, the Central Valley of California has always been a place of great historical significance, and it calls attention to the importance of the farmworker movement as a whole as a catalytic moment for labor rights and civil rights in this country.

GONYEA: And there’s no shortage of stories to tell, I’m sure.

ROSALES: There is no shortage of stories to tell. Absolutely. But the hard work we must do as teachers, educators, and members of the public is to ensure these stories are taught in our schools.

GONYEA: This is Oliver Rosales. He is a history professor at Bakersfield College. Thank you for joining us.

ROSALES: Thank you very much.

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