Coachella celebrates Cesar Chavez's legacy in the city with his grandson

As the state prepares to honor Cesar Chavez, hundreds turned out this week in Coachella to hear from his grandson about the time the famed labor leader spent there and the work he did to secure rights for farm workers across the country.

The talk Wednesday evening by Andres Chavez was part of Coachella Chavez Day, a community event held behind the Coachella Library two days ahead of the state holiday Cesar Chavez Day.

Hours before his speech, Andres Chavez visited one part of his grandfather's legacy in the city: Cesar Chavez Elementary School, which in 1990 became the first public school in the state to be named after him.

In the 1960s, Cesar Chavez worked out of the Casa del Trabajador, the United Farm Worker organization's offices at the corner of Fourth Street and Vine Avenue in downtown Coachella. He and the UFW helped obtain collective bargaining and other rights for workers, as well as protection from pesticides.

Remembering that his grandfather often had his life threatened for his activism, Andres Chavez said visiting the elementary school emphasized that the leader fought "so that one day, these kids could have opportunities in education and the American dream."

"I also know that there's a lot of individuals here who marched alongside my tata (grandfather) Cesar ... people who fed him, people who were his guards, people who let him sleep overnight," said Andres Chavez, executive director of the National Chavez Center, which works to preserve and promote Cesar Chavez's work.

Sitting in front of the library gazebo before speeches began, Maria Del Carmen Santos, 55, recalled seeing Cesar Chavez when he visited grape fields in North Shore, where she worked as a child.

"I remember the bad working conditions. We had to bring our own carretas (carts) to carry all the grapes and there was nowhere to go to the bathroom," Santos said. "If Cesar didn't do something then, the farm workers today would be worse off."

Santos was accompanied by her 8-year-old granddaughter and 6-year-old nephew and said it was important to her that they experience events like Coachella Chavez Day, to learn about the "hardworking people in the fields" and the history of their struggles.

The about 200 attendees also heard from Mayor Steven Hernandez, Mayor Pro Tem Neftali Galarza, Councilmember Stephanie Virgen and Councilmember Frank Figueroa, who all shared that Cesar Chavez's work impacted their own lives, because they are children of farm workers. They all addressed the crowd in both English and Spanish.

"The story of Coachella is the story of Cesar," Hernandez said. "We should've had this event at least 50 years back, because it is important to recognize all of those who fought alongside him and to remember that together we are stronger."

The city last week announced it plans to make Coachella Chavez Day an annual event.

Hernandez credited Galarza for asking Andres Chavez to speak at the celebration. Later, Galarza said the two met in their college years, when they both attended a UFW convention.

Coachella resident and activist Clementina Olloque, who worked alongside Cesar Chavez in her teens, was also among the evening's speakers. She gave an impassioned presentation, which included photos of the two and anecdotes of the times she and other farm workers went on strike.

For 20 years, Olloque led efforts to have a street in Coachella with Cesar Chavez's name. In 2018, she finally saw it become a reality.

While Andres Chavez explained that his grandfather didn't like to have things named after him, as the UFW organization's efforts involved many, he said he is proud that the name now indicates hope and opportunity.

"Their work was just as much about labor and wages as it was about hope and opportunity," Andres Chavez said.

Another event in Coachella honoring Cesar Chavez will be ¡Celebrando a Cesar! It will consist of a play about his life put on by the children of the Coachella Library's Crafts and Cuentos Club and an appearance by local author Maria Victoria Castillo, who will talk about her experience harvesting crops in local fields. The event will start at 11 a.m. on Saturday inside the library.

Eliana Perez covers the eastern Coachella Valley. Reach her at eliana.perez@thedesertsun.com or on Twitter @ElianaPress.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Coachella celebrates Cesar Chavez's legacy in the city