Cesar Chavez

This is Cesar Chavez later in his life (http://www.labor-studies.org/images/chavez.jpg)

Picture a modern day Superman, A hero at its finest- there for those sick, in need, or just anyone calling for help. They’ll be someone who will be there when you need them and without the hunger for glory or accreditation or compensation of any sort. This Superman had lived the life of the migrant worker picking fruit and did not even have to wonder about them to care and want to help. He was not ignorant to their working conditions, and this man, Cesar Chavez, wanted to help. Cesar Chavez did a lot of things for migrant workers due to the compassion and empathy for them for he too had lived this life. Chavez lived on 16-acre farm until year 7 of the Great Depression where his parents, emigrants from Mexico, were forced to leave. This all helped shape the man he is known as. Many people have heard of Cesar Chavez, but never really understood what he did or why so many people know him. Chavez was not famous until towards the end of his life, but what he did was help with many tasks for workers, thus beginning his life as a humanitarian. Cesar Chavez is a hero because he fought for the rights of migrant workers, not for personal gain, but because he wanted to help those who could not have a voice of their own, even if it endangered him in the end.

Cesar Chavez showed many heroic traits through his actions and his words throughout his life. Chavez was born in 1927. When his parents lost their farm in the 1930’s, Chavez started doing migrant work. In 1952 he landed a job in San Jose, and here was introduced to the social justice system by a man named Father Donald McDonnell and the CSO. He also helped with the famous five year strike on grapes in 1966, and from then on fasted and led thousands of strikes such as the lettuce strike, until his passing in 1993. All of these things that Cesar accomplished in his life show what kind of a man he was no matter what he faced, a hero.

In the center is Chavez walking for a cause (http://mistersauce.com/)

Cesar Chavez did something most people would not do; he put himself out of his comfort zone for others so he could help them. Cesar Chavez did many things for others, and was widely known for this; “The Legendary activist organized laborers not for political power or ego gratification, but because he himself had lived the life of an exploited migrant worker, and he wanted thousands of families to enjoy a more comfortable life… Chavez fasted for 36 days in 1986 as a protest against pesticide use.” (Mooney). This shows that Cesar Chavez was heroic in the ways of passion for helping people, to the point of a hunger strike so that people would know that he really meant what he did and what he believed to be right. He did not have to feel compassion because he had lived through what they go through every day. Chavez had many things said about him due to all his heroic actions,“(Chavez) said his life was dedicated only to bettering the lives of exploited farm workers. He was a vegetarian and his weekly salary of five dollars has a virtual vow of poverty” (Qtd. In Mooney). Chavez did not care about the luxurious things in life and did not care about what others thought about him, just that he himself was doing the right thing. He did it so he could hold his head up high and help others. A hero is someone who does out of the ordinary things for other people, and that is just what he did.

Chavez is also a hero because to do what was necessary, he had to hold his head high and help others, thus endangering himself. Chavez wanted to help many people, “In 1944 he joined the U.S. Navy. He served for two years in the Pacific, but racism kept him in menial jobs, so upon discharge he rejoined his family and continued as a farm worker in California” (Bourgoin). When he wanted to help in the world, he did something dangerous, and joined the military. The only reason he did not continue his service was due to the racism keeping him from a job that he felt would help. Another example is during the famous Delano grape strike, to do what he set out to do, and cause an economic boycott that stayed public, Chavez “Staged a grueling 300 mile march from Delano to Sacramento, and later he fasted for three weeks to rededicate the union to nonviolence” (Meister and Loftis). This demonstrates how he put himself out of his comfort zone to do what he knew to be right. He wanted something done about the migrant workers working conditions and benefits, but as long as it was done in a non-violent way. Fasting and making a demanding walk illustrates his commitment to his work. Heroes do many things, but the two main ones are, they do the impossible or they help others for nothing in return. Cesar Chavez did both.

Chavez during the famous grape strike (http://3.bp.blogspot.com/)

Cesar Chavez will always be remembered as a champion and hero for what he did; improving the lives of hundreds of thousands of people throughout his life out of the goodness of his heart. The LA Times once stated about Chavez, “He was the first person to organize farm labor on a large scale….In that sense he was the most important labor leader since World War II. He really represented the basic division between the power structure and the people at the bottom who spoke a different language and have a different skin color” (Qtd. in Mooney). Chavez helped those who could not do it themselves because of their race and social class. He was just like them in every sense of the word and was proud to admit it. Along with this great pride he obtained for his people, he gained the adoration of all labor workers that gained benefits from his actions. “For more than three decades Cesar led the first successful farm workers union in American history, achieving dignity, respect, fair wages, medical coverage, pension benefits, and humane living conditions, as well as countless other rights and protections for hundreds of thousands of farm workers. Against previously insurmountable odds, he led successful strikes and boycotts that resulted in the first industry-wide labor contracts in the history of American agriculture. His union's efforts brought about the passage of the groundbreaking 1975 California Agricultural Labor Relations Act to protect farm workers. Today, it remains the only law in the nation that protects the farm workers' right to unionize” (“American Hero”). Chavez’s actions were not for anything in return, he helped because he knew it was right and he understood what they were going through. That’s just what a hero does. Chavez shows us that a person does not have to be famous or rich to help those in need, all someone has to do his have the ambition to pull off the task and lend a hand to those who need it.