Start Date: February 2, 2026
No. That isn’t a typo. I am not speaking of the Roman general. I am speaking of Cesar Chavez.
On March 31 our country will acknowledge Cesar Chavez Day. He, along with former Dodgers pitcher Fernando Valenzuela, is among the Hispanics most revered by Californians. As such, last year on March 31, 2025 CA Governor Gavin Newsom proclaimed his birthday a CA state holiday to honor him [1].
Mr. Chavez’ legacy is his work to improve the lives of farm workers in the southwest. I have driven past berry farms in Ventura and can attest that even now it looks to be a pretty hard way to earn a fraction of a living.
Mr. Newsom’s proclamation alludes to Mr Chavez work for “social justice” and “prosperity for all”.
Well, Yes and no, depending on how you keep score.
Unlike Mr. Valenzuela, the Dodger’s pitcher, Mr. Chavez was not from Mexico. In fact the proclamation notes that Mr. Chavez was born near Yuma Arizona. If you followed any of the mass onslaught of illegal immigration in the United States in the early 2020’s you would know that Yuma Arizona was a ground zero locale for 1000’s of illegal border crossings per day.
Again Mr. Chavez didn’t migrate to Yuma Arizona. He was born there.
He dedicated himself to increasing wages and improving the quality of life of the Americans, mostly Hispanic, and also Filipino, who did the heavy lifting of harvesting the produce grown in the southwest.
To that end he organized strikes and formed what would become the United Farm Workers. As with all labor negotiations the effort is to highlight the value of labor, sometimes by work stoppages and also by organizing boycotts. In particular he promoted a consumer boycott of grapes.
No college Econ 101 class was required for Cesar Chavez to understand that the law of “supply and demand” was applicable to both product demand and labor supply.
So the last thing Mr. Chavez and his UFW (United Farm Workers) laborers needed was competition from “undocumented workers” who would break strikes and/or undercut wages.
As such he was very, very much a staunch opponent of illegal immigration.
In fact, feeling that the federal Border Control were not sufficient to protect the border, he launched an “Illegals Campaign” to raise awareness about the issue and report them to the authorities” [2]. It is reported that “At one point, the patrol operation was so large, it employed 300 people and cost the UFW $80,000 a week” [2]. “This initiative included organizing patrols along the U.S.-Mexico border, which were led by Chávez’s cousin, Manuel Chávez. These patrols sought to prevent undocumented immigrants from entering the U.S. and potentially undermining the UFW’s labor actions” [3].
This is not a scandal. It is a misunderstanding. Cesar Chavez wasn’t Mother Teresa. He was closer to Jimmy Hoffa. He was a labor organizer whose first priority was the benefits of his workers.
In the 1980’s Michigan’s auto workers began to feel significant competition from overseas companies that had their own designs, factories and workers. That is fair game. But if the UAW (United Auto Workers) held a strike and Canadians crossed the border illegally to work for Ford or GM or Chrysler there would have been blood in the Detroit River.
You may lean toward “right to work” or toward pro-union. Either way. But if you wish to celebrate Cesar Chavez Day, you will have to remove your “No one is illegal” sign.
So on March 31 will it be
“Hail Cesar”
or will you just
“Let them eat grapes?”
REFERENCES
[1] Governor Newsom proclaims César Chávez Day 2025, March 31, 2025, https://www.gov.ca.gov/2025/03/31/governor-newsom-proclaims-cesar-chavez-day
[2] Saldana, Sean, “The complicated legacy of César Chávez”, Texas Standard, October 17, 2022, https://www.kut.org/texasstandard/2022-10-17/cesar-chavez-complicated-legacy-united-farm-workers-immigration
[3] Fernanda Verano, Brenda, and Zacarias Michelle, “A sobering reflection on César Chávez’s anti-immigration views and lasting legacy”, CALO News, March 31, 2025, https://www.calonews.com/featured-topics/politics/a-sobering-reflection-on-c-sar-ch-vez-s-anti-immigration-views-and-lasting-legacy/article_a089f15d-2fd5-46d9-86af-87472db42a5f.html