Title
Proclamation Honoring César Chávez
Body
César Chávez Day
WHEREAS, revered first generation Mexican American civil rights and labor rights activist, César Chávez, was born near Yuma, Arizona, on March 31, 1927; and
WHEREAS, during the Great Depression, Chávez began working as a farmer to help support his family, which served as his first introduction to the issues facing farmers, especially migrant farmers, in our country; and
WHEREAS, Chávez began a career in community organizing in 1948, coordinating anti-discrimination campaigns and directing voter registration drives in Mexican American communities with the San Jose chapter of the Community Service Organization; and
WHEREAS, in 1962, Chávez co-founded the National Farm Workers Association, now known as the United Farm Workers of America, one of the first and most successful farm workers’ unions in our country; and
WHEREAS, Chávez spent his entire life organizing non-violent protests, boycotts, marches, and hunger strikes, and successfully secured union contracts that improved working conditions and wages for thousands of migrant farm workers in the United States; and
WHEREAS, today, on what would have been his 95th birthday, the City of San Leandro reflects on the life and legacy of César Chávez, and celebrates his many important contributions to civil rights, the labor movement, and the political landscape in our state and across our country.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, Juan Gonzalez, III, Mayor of the City of San Leandro, do hereby proclaim March 31, 2023, as “César Chávez Day” in the City of San Leandro.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the City of San Leandro to be affixed this twentieth day of March 2023.