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Old 09-21-2010, 07:08 PM   #11
Nat
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Latino civil rights leader, Cesar E. Chavez, fought for gay and lesbian rights.

Memphis---In March 2006, American Latinos mark the 40th anniversary of Cesar Chavez’s historic 1966 Pilgrimage from Delano, CA to California’s state Capitol steps in Sacramento to draw national attention to farm workers’ struggles and working and living conditions. Cesar E. Chavez went from being a farm worker to becoming an enormous force as a union leader, environmentalist, civil rights leader, and humanitarian. Among his numerous honors were the Presidential Medal of Freedom Award, the highest honor awarded to a civilian, and creation of a holiday and day of service. In addition to his vocation on behalf of farm workers, few know that Cesar E. Chavez also advocated gay and lesbian civil rights.

Cesar Chavez’s nonviolent social movement and leadership facilitated the United Farm Workers led successful strikes and boycotts. According to The Cesar E. Chavez Foundation, he formulated a diverse and extraordinary national coalition of students, middle-class consumers, trade unionists, religious groups, and minorities including, Latinos, Filipinos, Native Americans, Jews, African Americans, and gays and lesbians.

In the 1970’s, before public acceptance of gays, he spoke strongly for gay rights especially during gay rights rallies and marches. His equality paradigm remained strong and uncompromising as he spoke on the National Mall in Wahsington, D.C to a gay and lesbian audiance during the late 1980s.

“Our movement has been supporting lesbian and gay rights for over 20 years. We supported lesbian and gay rights when it was just a crowd of 10 people.”---Cesar Chavez, 1987 march for gay and lesbian rights in Washington, DC.


Her granddaughter, Christine Chavez, presently the United Farm Workers California Political Director, continues her grandfather’s legacy. She learned that one couldn’t champion equality for one’s own people while tolerating discrimination against any other people because of who they are. She also ascertained that ‘leadership’ isn’t about following the crowd or keeping one’s constituency. It’s about getting out in front and leading people in the right direction. Christine Chavez demonstrated that by presiding at a commitment ceremony for same-sex couples in 2004. And she also endorsed California’s AB 19, the gay marriage bill, in 2005.

Beyond being a family legacy, Latino national organizations representing over 23 million Latinos living in the United States such as the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda (NHLA), Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF), the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), and the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA) have announced their opposition to the proposed U.S. contitutional amemdment baning same-sex marriage. These organizations’ memberhip base know discrimination all to well and realize that discrimination placed into U.S. law simply relegates gay and lesbians to a second-class status. The Consitution and its subsequent amendments should not restrict the rights of a whole class of people and thus conflict with its guilding principle of equal protection.

Despite Cesar Chavez passing on April 23, 1993, his life transcends any one cause or struggle. He continues to influence and inspire Americans to seek social justice and civil rights for the disenfranchised in our society. Chavez Day, March 31st, is observed in eight states (AZ, CA, CO, MI, NM, TX, UT, WI) and dozens of cities and counties throughout the nation. Chavez Day grants us an opportunity to honor the legacy of Cesar Chavez by getting involved in our LGBT and allies community.

http://www.mglcc.org/adelante_english.htm
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