Today, the National Park Service officially welcomed the country's newest NPS unit, the César E. Chávez National Monument. Located in Keene, California at Nuestra
Señora Reina de la Paz, the site is the national headquarters of the United
Farmworkers of America and the home of César Chávez from 1971-1993.
"La Paz" is the 398th site included in our National Park System, and the first to recognize the work of a contemporary Latino icon. Adding the César E. Chávez National Monument to the National Park System comes at a fitting time, as Americans celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month.
“César Chávez is an iconic leader for our entire nation. Chavez and his supporters made a big difference for farmworkers in the United States, and he did this by organizing the unorganized," says Ron Sundergill, National Parks Conservation Association’s Pacific Region Director shared this comment. "Before Chavez organized farmworkers they were beaten down by economic forces and marginalized by our society. César Chávez helped us create a ‘more perfect union’ by making democracy work for many more people who previously had no voice.”
The designation of La Paz as a national monument honors the contributions of farm workers to the local and national economies, says Emily Schrepf, National Parks Conservation Association’s Central Valley Program Manager. She lauds President Obama's decision to honor this legacy by designating a national monument to César Chávez demonstrates how important his life and work are to the American people.
“César Chávez and Dolores Huerta are American heroes. They recognized that farmworkers were being deprived of their basic human rights and worked to empower tens of thousands of hard working people to get what they needed and deserved," says Emily. "Their legacy is just as important today as it was 50 years ago; the Central Valley now supplies one quarter of our nation’s food, made possible through the labor of those who work in the fields. While we still have more work to do to ensure that those who feed us have everything they deserve, the work of Chavez and his allies was groundbreaking not only for the grassroots change it brought about but in ultimately affecting policy changes that improved the lives of so many Americans then and now.”
Here's an excerpt from the National Parks Conservation Association's backgrounder on César Chávez's legacy:
"La Paz" is the 398th site included in our National Park System, and the first to recognize the work of a contemporary Latino icon. Adding the César E. Chávez National Monument to the National Park System comes at a fitting time, as Americans celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month.
Cesar Chavez, holds a shovel across his shoulders while working in the
community garden at La Paz (Time.com photo)
“César Chávez is an iconic leader for our entire nation. Chavez and his supporters made a big difference for farmworkers in the United States, and he did this by organizing the unorganized," says Ron Sundergill, National Parks Conservation Association’s Pacific Region Director shared this comment. "Before Chavez organized farmworkers they were beaten down by economic forces and marginalized by our society. César Chávez helped us create a ‘more perfect union’ by making democracy work for many more people who previously had no voice.”
The designation of La Paz as a national monument honors the contributions of farm workers to the local and national economies, says Emily Schrepf, National Parks Conservation Association’s Central Valley Program Manager. She lauds President Obama's decision to honor this legacy by designating a national monument to César Chávez demonstrates how important his life and work are to the American people.
President Barack Obama and Helen Chavez place a rose at the gravesite of
Cesar Chavez
before the dedication ceremony for the Cesar E. Chavez
National Monument in Keene, Calif.,
Oct. 8, 2012.
(Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
“César Chávez and Dolores Huerta are American heroes. They recognized that farmworkers were being deprived of their basic human rights and worked to empower tens of thousands of hard working people to get what they needed and deserved," says Emily. "Their legacy is just as important today as it was 50 years ago; the Central Valley now supplies one quarter of our nation’s food, made possible through the labor of those who work in the fields. While we still have more work to do to ensure that those who feed us have everything they deserve, the work of Chavez and his allies was groundbreaking not only for the grassroots change it brought about but in ultimately affecting policy changes that improved the lives of so many Americans then and now.”
Here's an excerpt from the National Parks Conservation Association's backgrounder on César Chávez's legacy:
César Chávez is recognized as one of the most important labor and human rights leaders in the United States during the twentieth century because of his leadership of the farmworkers movement in the 1960s. In alliance with thousands of farmworkers and their supporters, Chavez and Dolores Huerta co-founded the United Farm Workers of America (UFWA) in 1962, the first agricultural labor union in the nation. As president of the UFWA, Chavez steered the union through a series of unprecedented victories, including contracts that covered more than 100,000 farmworkers; raised wages, funded health care and pension plans; mandated the provision of drinking water and restroom facilities in the fields; regulated the use of pesticides in the fields; and established a fund for community service projects. Chavez's advocacy helped secure the passage of the first law in the U.S. that specifically recognized farmworkers' rights to organize unions and engage in collective bargaining.