DA urges S.J. County to honor civil rights icon with holiday

Mar. 30—San Joaquin County District Attorney Tori Verber Salazar on Tuesday urged leaders to include Cesar Chavez Day as a recognized holiday in the county.

Cesar Chavez Day is a national and state commemorative holiday on March 31 celebrating the life and work of civil rights activist Cesar Estrada Chavez.

However, it is not included as a holiday for San Joaquin County residents.

"The Latinx community deserves to be recognized in this manner," Verber Salazar told the San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors Tuesday.

"Cesar Chavez Day offers a stark reminder of the inequalities the Latinx community faces, and to acknowledge the groundbreaking activism by Cesar Chavez to give a voice to an otherwise unrepresented heritage should be celebrated," she said.

The Latinx and Hispanic communities account for nearly 50% of San Joaquin County's population, and Verber Salazar said it was time to officially honor the civil rights activist, whose efforts focused on equal rights for farm workers, laborers, an others.

Cesar Chavez Day has been observed in California since 1995 and was nationally recognized by President Barack Obama in 2014.

Known for his activism to help the Mexican American labor movement, Cesar Chavez was a leader and educator who co-founded the National Farm Workers Association in 1962 with fellow labor movement activist Dolores Huerta in Kern County.

To join the movement, residents are encouraged to submit public comments to the Board of Supervisors by emailing sjpubliccomments@sjgov.org.

Verber Salazar also traveled to Olympia, Wash., this week with board chair Tom Patti to observe the police department's crisis response team.

The pair were joined by Kayce Rane, the District Attorney's policy and planning director, as well as Stockton Police Department Deputy Chief Eric Kane, Tracy Police Department Corporal Steve Blair and county resident Cindy Basso.

Olympia's crisis response unit is comprised of non-sworn individuals who work with police officers in response to low-risk, non-violent calls including non-emergency medical calls, transporting individuals to services and shelters, and homeless outreach, among other activities.

The unit is responsible for providing immediate assistance to those in crisis, and has proven to be successful for Olympia Police Department in the co-responder model, according to Verber Salazar.

San Joaquin County is considering adopting Olympia's model to respond to families in crisis, as well as reduce the number of people living on the street, she said.

"The call for change surrounding responses to people in need of crisis assistance has resonated nationwide," Verber Salazar said in a Friday media statement.

"A crisis response unit is a team that would address the needs of the community — such as mental health, substance abuse, family harm — and allow law enforcement to focus on serious crime," she added. "The model Olympia Police Department has adopted is one of the most progressive and innovative to help individuals in crisis, as well as lessening the sheer number of responsibilities law enforcement officers are tasked with."