Cesar a Mexican-American, was born in 1927 on a farm in Yuma, Arizona. His full name was Cesar Estrada Chavez. He began working on the farm when he was a small child. When he was 10 years old his parents lost the farm in the Great Depression. Because of this his parrents became migrant farm workers in California only earning about a dollar a day to pick fruit.
In the early 60's Cesar began organising a union for farm workers, but it was more than a union it was the La Causa. La Causa was a movement that gave wellbeing to the migrant workers. Durring this time he founded the National Farm Workers Asociation. In 1966 he merged and became the UFWOC or the United Farm Workers Organization Committy. He organized and inspired California's Mexican-American migrant workers.
In 1965 the UFW joined the Pilipino grape pickers in their strike in San Joaquin Valley.
Establishment of rural rehabilitation camps for mi...
Duncan West speaking with Cesar Chavez. The Delano...
ChavezIt was the start of the 10 year La Huelga strike. 17 million people stoped buying grapes when he called for a boycott in 1968. When it got violent Chavez went on a hunger strike that lasted 25 days. When he did this companies one by one gave in. By 1975 wages tripled, the UFW had over 50,000 members, and the governer started americas first bargaining right for farm workers.
Chavez was a very simple and selfless person. He dressed simply in a flannel shirt and a pair of Levis. Out of the organization funds he paid himself only about 5 dollars a week. He was commited to nonviolence, even during the outbreaks from the strikes. He also felt it was courageous to sacrifice ourselves for others in nonviolent struggles for justice. He remained a spokesmen for migrant workers untill his death in 1993.
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