California set to rename César Chavez Day following sexual abuse allegations

SACRAMENTO, Calif (AP) — California lawmakers will vote Thursday to rename César Chavez Day as Farmworkers Day in an effort to reconcile the Latino labor icon’s legacy with explosive sexual abuse allegations before the state holiday March 31.

Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom is expected to quickly sign the bill.

The change comes after allegations became public last week that Chavez had sexually abused girls and women during his days building a major farmworker labor rights movement in the 1960s in California’s agricultural heartland. Among those who accused him was Dolores Huerta, who co-led the movement that eventually became the United Farm Workers.

The state’s effort to rename the holiday is part of a wave of other moves to alter memorials honoring the man who in the 1960s helped secure better wages and working conditions for farmworkers and had been admired by many Democratic leaders. The swift and sweeping effort to erase Chavez’s name from public life was previously unthinkable, as his status had only grown more iconic since his death in 1993.

California was the first state to designate Chavez’s birthday, March 31, as a holiday to honor the civil rights leader nearly 30 years ago. The Legislature then in 2000 passed a bill to make it an official paid day off for state employees and require that students learn about his legacy and his role in the labor movement in California.

The California bill passed in the Assembly with bipartisan support on Monday and is now before the Senate.

“We cannot ignore wrongdoing and we should not continue to celebrate a single person when the movement itself is so much bigger,” Assemblymember Cecilia Aguiar-Curry said before the vote Monday.

Republican Assemblymember Alexandra Macedo said the change is about honoring workers and their families.

“This isn’t just about a date on a calendar or a name on a building,” Macedo said. “It is about the hands that feed this nation. It is about the men and women who are in the orchards, in the fields, before the sun even touches the horizon, and who are still there long after it sets.”

Since the allegations came to light, California State University, Fresno had covered up Chavez’s statue on campus, while cities like San Francisco, Los Angeles and Sacramento have taken steps to erase his names from public landmarks. Some advocated for Huerta’s name to replace Chavez’s, and several states already said they won’t observe the day.