LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — Governor Joe Lombardo announced Tuesday that he will not be signing the annual César Chavez Day proclamation in light of new allegations against the labor leader.
Chavez was a widely admired Latino icon who brought to light the struggles of farmhands and led the United Farm Workers union until his death in 1993.
Earlier this month, labor rights activist Dolores Huerta revealed she was among multiple women and girls who say they were sexually abused by César Chavez.
MORE NEWS: César Chavez accused of sexually abusing labor rights leader Dolores Huerta and others
In her statement, Huerta, who worked alongside Chavez for decades, said she stayed silent about the abuse for 60 years out of concerns that it would harm the farmworker movement.
“I carried this secret for as long as I did because building the movement and securing farmworker rights was life’s work. The formation of a union was the only vehicle to accomplish and secure those rights and I wasn’t going to let César or anyone else get in the way,” she said.
Across the country, celebrations honoring César Chavez Day, which is celebrated on March 31, his birthday, have been canceled.
Michael Green, a professor at UNLV who researches unions, told FOX5 that Chavez’s legacy as a person could change, but that his impact will not. “Chavez is a heroic figure to a lot of people. And what we now know makes him a lot less heroic, but it does not reduce or eliminate his accomplishments.”
Green added: “We should not look at him as a personal hero.”
On Tuesday, Governor Lombardo shared a statement with FOX5, which read in part, “As someone who spent a career in law enforcement dedicated to protecting victims, the Governor understands that a formal recognition from the state would be painful for many. The Nevada legislature has a duty to carefully review these allegations and decide whether César Chavez Day still belongs in state code.”
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