As new sexual abuse allegations against the civil rights activist Cesar Chavez come to light, Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson’s office says the state will not recognize the late labor activist later this month.
Washington became one of a handful of states to recognize March 31 — Chavez’s birthday — as Cesar Chavez Day starting in 2018. Since then, Cesar Chavez Day has been recognized as a state legal holiday.
United Farm Workers President Cesar Chavez, carrying a sign calling for a boycott of California table grapes, leads about 400 people picketing a Safeway supermarket in Seattle, Wash., Dec. 19, 1969.
BARRY SWEET / AP
But in an emailed statement to KUOW on Wednesday, Brionna Aho, a spokesperson for Ferguson, said that “in light of the shocking allegations,” the governor “will not be issuing a proclamation honoring Cesar Chavez Day this year.”
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An investigation from The New York Times that published Wednesday morning uncovered allegations that the labor leader sexually abused two women when they were minors. Chavez was in his late 40s.
Dolores Huerta, who co-founded the United Farm Workers with Chavez in the 1960s, also told The New York Times that Chavez abused her.
Huerta later published a statement, saying that as a young mother she experienced “two separate sexual encounters with Cesar [Chavez].” The first time, Huerta said she was “manipulated and pressured into having sex with him.” The second time, Huerta was “forced, against my will, and in an environment where I felt trapped.”
Instead of celebrating Cesar Chavez Day, Aho said the governor “looks forward” to celebrating Dolores Huerta Day on April 10.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
