LCLAA Celebrates the Life and Contributions of Cesar E. Chavez As we Continue to Work for a More Inclusive and Just Future

MEDIA STATEMENT
Wednesday, March  31, 2021
Contact: Andrea Arenas / 202-316-1212

Washington D.C.- Cesar Chavez dedicated his life to improving the working conditions of thousands of farmworkers, whose labor fed families across our nation, yet would often face hunger due to low wages. His passion was working for his people, for his community, and organizing workers to demand fair wages, to improve working conditions, and to enhance the quality of life of working families.

Cesar Chavez finished his formal education after eighth grade and immediately thereafter started working the fields full-time in order to help his family make ends meet. It was there, in the fields, where young Cesar Chavez learned and experienced the hardships and injustices that farmworkers face. 

In 1952 Cesar Chavez was recruited and trained by the Community Service Organization, a prominent Latino civil rights group of the time, where he spent 10 years working on voter registration, get-out-the-vote drives, leading and campaigns against racial and economic discrimination. His conviction to the labor movement helped create the National Farm Workers Association (NFWA), in 1962 which later became the United Farmworkers of America. 

Almost three decades have passed since this great leader left us, yet his fight, legacy and resilience are still alive in each and every one of the countless Latino and immigrant working families who are part of “la Lucha” for fair working conditions and a chance to prosper. 

“Today we celebrate the life of a leader who chose to stand up for working families that had long been forgotten and neglected,” said Yanira Merino LCLAA National President. “This year we welcome Cesar Chavez Day, with the determination needed to continue advocating, mobilizing, and organizing for fair wages, workers’ protections, and legislation that can level the playing field for all working families.”

“Cesar Chavez initiated a movement aimed at empowering workers. His voice still resonates in the homes and hearts of countless union families across the nation”, said Jose Vargas, LCLAA Executive Director. “LCLAA’s purpose is to echo Cesar Chavez’s voice and to unite our communities so that our voices can be heard.  ¡Sí se puede!”

“Without a union, the people are always cheated, and they are so innocent,” 

-Cesar Chavez

###

The Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA) is the leading national organization for Latino(a) workers and their families. LCLAA was born in 1972 out of the need to educate, organize and mobilize Latinos in the labor movement and has expanded its influence to organize Latinos in an effort to impact workers’ rights and their influence in the political process. LCLAA represents the interest of more than 2 million Latino workers in the American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), The Change to Win Federation, Independent Unions and all its membership. Visit LCLAA on the web at www.lclaa.org, on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram