For me, it's someone I've honored, respected, and followed. Growing up here in East Oakland, Chavez's organizing motivated many of us to not only speak out on behalf of our communities but to do the work...advocating for the humanity of not just farmworkers but those of us in the neighborhood.
Homeowner Richard Segovia said the decision to remove Chavez's image came quickly. Segovia, who described himself as a longtime advocate for women and a supporter of young artists, said he contacted the muralist he works with immediately after a New York Times investigation detailed the allegations. UFW cofounder Dolores Huerta claims to be a survivor of Chavez's alleged abuse.
Many like Wilcox are working to reconcile the legacy of a man who fought tirelessly for the rights of farmworkers with stunning allegations that he sexually abused girls and the co-founder of the United Farm Workers of America union, Dolores Huerta.
She is the co-founder of UFW, of all alleged victims, and she calls herself a survivor. She doesn't call herself a victim. Who would have thought? And she kept it quiet for all those decades because she believed in the cause, she didn't want to destroy the cause, she says. She only came out now because these other women had spoken out about their attacks, their sexual assaults, and she didn't want them hanging out there on their own.
I am nearly 96 years old, and for the last 60 years have kept a secret because I believed that exposing the truth would hurt the farmworker movement I have spent my entire life fighting for. As a young mother in the 1960s, I experienced two separate sexual encounters with Cesar. The first time I was manipulated and pressured into having sex with him, and I didn't feel I could say no because he was someone that I admired, my boss and the leader of the movement I had already devoted years of my life to. The second time I was forced, against my will, and in an environment where I felt trapped.
Far more troubling are allegations involving abuse of young women or minors. Allegations that very young women or girls may have been victimized are crushing. The union said in its statement that Chavez allegedly behaved in ways that are incompatible with our organization's values, and while some of the reports are family issues, there are more and significant allegations being made.
