Lawmakers Wasted No Time Condemning a Sexual Predator…for Once

It’s been less than two weeks since the New York Times dropped a bombshell story detailing the mountain of sexual abuse and pedophile allegations against César Chavez—a long-esteemed beacon of the Latin civil rights and labor movement. States have since rightfully wasted no time scrubbing his legacy. Who would have thought lawmakers actually can act fast when a sexual predator is involved!???

The NYT story centers on two women, Debra Rojas and Ana Murguia, who say Chavez sexually abused them for years when they were girls, from 1972 to 1977—when he was already well known for co-founding United Farm Workers, the nation’s first successful farmworkers’ union, which he began in 1966. Murguia, who had known Chavez since she was 8, said she was frequently called to Chavez’s home office in her teens, where he would put her on a yoga mat and grope her. Rojas was also groped in his office beginning at age 12—and three years later, he had her stay in a motel room during a weeklong march in California, where he repeatedly raped her. Both their fathers were part of the union and worked closely with Chavez. 

Their stories led to dozens more allegations, based on interviews with more than 60 people—including his relatives and staff workers, as well as hundreds of pages of union records, internal emails, and photographs. The investigation also revealed one of his victims as Dolores Huerta, one of Chavez’s most recognized allies, a co-founder of UFW, and the activist who, in 1972,  coined the term, “Sí, se Puede” (“Yes, we can!”).

Chavez had eight children with his wife of 45 years, Helen Chavez. Though he is known to have been involved in various affairs, he had at least four children with three other women. He died at age 66 in 1993.

With the abuse allegations unknown to most, Chavez’s name has been celebrated for more than a decade. In 2014, Barack Obama declared March 31 (his birthday) “Cesar Chavez Day” as a federal commemorative day, and at least 10 states declared it a state holiday. As a result, over the past two weeks, lawmakers have been scrambling to scrub his name from the day.

Hear me out- don’t change it from cesar chavez day to farmworkers day

Change it to Doloroes Huerta Day, you dolts. While she is alive. She did everything he did while enduring him raping her.

— Cake or Death (@johngcole.bsky.social) March 20, 2026 at 4:47 AM

In Minnesota, Gov. Tim Walz (D) signed a fast-tracked bill on Friday and subsequently declared that today is Farmworkers Day; Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-Calif.) did somthing similar on Thursday; and in Denver, Colorado, Mayor Mike Johnston (D) announced the day after the NYT article came out that Tuesday would be recognized as “Sí, Se Puede Day.” Similar efforts took place in Illinois, Arizona, and Texas. In Washington, Gov. Bob Ferguson (D) said that while the state isn’t celebrating César Chavez Day, it will focus on Dolores Huerta Day on her birthday, April 10. Hats off to him.

Many of the celebrations, parades, and festivals honoring Chavez were also renamed, postponed, or canceled. Speaking to the Associated Press, one of the organizers for the César Chavez celebration in Mesa County, Colorado—which for years has brought the community together with music, food, and scholarship opportunities for students—called the allegations a “personal hurt and betrayal.” “I think that’s what my [organizing] committee was feeling, and I think when we look at our community here, that is what people are still feeling. They’re feeling a lot of hurt and a lot [sic] anger.” He says that canceling “simply wasn’t an option,” and the event’s logo has also been adjusted to revolve around “Sí, Se Puede!” Looks like the day really belongs to Huerta, after all.

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