Cesar Chavez, 1927-1993: He Organized the First Successful Farm Workers Union in America Today we tell about one of the great labor activists, Cesar Chavez. He organized the first successful farm workers union in American history. Cesar Chavez was born on a small farm near Yuma, Arizona in 1927. In the late 19th century, Cesario Chavez, Cesar's grandfather, had started the Chavez family farm after escaping slavery on a Mexican farm. Cesar Chavez spent his earliest years on this farm. When he was ten years old, however, the economic conditions of the Great Depression forced his parents to give up the family farm. He then became a migrant farm worker along with the rest of his family. The Chavez family joined thousands of other farm workers who traveled around the state of California to harvest crops for farm owners. They traveled from place to place to harvest grapes, lettuce, beets and many other crops. They worked very hard and received little pay. These migrant workers had no permanent homes. They lived in dirty, crowded camps. They had no bathrooms, electricity or running water. Like the Chavez family, most of them came from Mexico. Because his family traveled from place to place, Cesar Chavez attended more than thirty schools as a child. He learned to read and write from his grandmother. Mama Tella also taught him about the Catholic religion. Religion later became an important tool for Mr. Chavez. He used religion to organize Mexican farm workers who were Catholic. In 1984 Cesar Chavez made this speech, predicting the future success of his efforts for Latinos. CESAR CHAVEZ: "Like the other immigrant groups, the day will come when we win the economic and political rewards which are in keeping with our numbers in society. The day will come when the politicians will do the right thing for our people out of political necessity and not out of charity or idealism." Cesar Chavez died in 1993 at the age of sixty-six. More than 40,000 people attended his funeral. A year later, President Clinton awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the United States. The United Farm Workers Union still fights for the rights of farm workers throughout the United States. Many schools, streets, parks, libraries and other public buildings have been named after Cesar Chavez. The great labor leader always believed in the words "Si se puede": It can be done. Voice of America Special English www.manythings.org/voa/people Source: Cesar Chavez, 1927- 1993: He Organized the First Successful Farm Workers Union in America TEXT = www.voanews.com/specialenglish/archive/2009-09/2009-09-02-voa1.cfm?renderforprint=1 MP3 = www.voanews.com/mediaassets/specialenglish/2009_09/audio/Mp3/se-pia-ceasar-chavez-06-sept-09_0.Mp3

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