[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 155 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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117th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. RES. 155
Honoring the accomplishments and legacy of Cesar Estrada Chavez.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
April 14, 2021
Mr. Menendez (for himself, Mr. Bennet, Mr. Heinrich, Mr. Blumenthal,
Ms. Cortez Masto, Mr. Padilla, Mr. Durbin, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Markey, Mr.
Booker, Mr. Kelly, Ms. Rosen, Mrs. Murray, Ms. Duckworth, Mrs.
Feinstein, and Mr. Lujan) submitted the following resolution; which was
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Honoring the accomplishments and legacy of Cesar Estrada Chavez.
Whereas Cesar Estrada Chavez was born on March 31, 1927, near Yuma, Arizona;
Whereas Cesar Estrada Chavez spent his early years on a family farm;
Whereas, at the age of 10, Cesar Estrada Chavez joined the thousands of migrant
farm workers laboring in fields and vineyards throughout the Southwest
after a bank foreclosure resulted in the loss of the family farm;
Whereas Cesar Estrada Chavez, after attending more than 30 elementary and middle
schools and achieving an eighth grade education, left school to work
full-time as a farm worker to help support his family;
Whereas, at the age of 17, Cesar Estrada Chavez entered the United States Navy
and served the United States with distinction for 2 years;
Whereas, in 1948, Cesar Estrada Chavez returned from military service to marry
Helen Fabela, whom he had met while working in the vineyards of central
California;
Whereas Cesar Estrada Chavez and Helen Fabela had 8 children;
Whereas, as early as 1949, Cesar Estrada Chavez was committed to organizing farm
workers to campaign for safe and fair working conditions, reasonable
wages, livable housing, and the outlawing of child labor;
Whereas, in 1952, Cesar Estrada Chavez joined the Community Service
Organization, a prominent Latino civil rights group, and worked with the
organization to coordinate voter registration drives and conduct
campaigns against discrimination in East Los Angeles;
Whereas Cesar Estrada Chavez served as the national director of the Community
Service Organization;
Whereas, in 1962, Cesar Estrada Chavez left the Community Service Organization
to establish the National Farm Workers Association, which eventually
became the United Farm Workers of America;
Whereas, under the leadership of Cesar Estrada Chavez, the United Farm Workers
of America organized thousands of migrant farm workers to fight for fair
wages, health care coverage, pension benefits, livable housing, and
respect;
Whereas Cesar Estrada Chavez was a strong believer in the principles of
nonviolence practiced by Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.;
Whereas Cesar Estrada Chavez effectively used peaceful tactics that included
fasting for 25 days in 1968, 25 days in 1972, and 38 days in 1988 to
call attention to the terrible working and living conditions of farm
workers in the United States;
Whereas, through his commitment to nonviolence, Cesar Estrada Chavez brought
dignity and respect to the organized farm workers and became an
inspiration to and a resource for individuals engaged in human rights
struggles throughout the world;
Whereas the influence of Cesar Estrada Chavez extends far beyond agriculture and
provides inspiration for individuals working to better human rights,
empower workers, and advance the American Dream, which includes all
people of the United States;
Whereas Cesar Estrada Chavez died on April 23, 1993, at the age of 66 in San
Luis, Arizona, only miles from his birthplace;
Whereas more than 50,000 people attended the funeral services of Cesar Estrada
Chavez in Delano, California;
Whereas Cesar Estrada Chavez was laid to rest at the headquarters of the United
Farm Workers of America, known as ``Nuestra Senora de La Paz'', located
in the Tehachapi Mountains in Keene, California;
Whereas, since the death of Cesar Estrada Chavez, schools, parks, streets,
libraries, and other public facilities, as well as awards and
scholarships, have been named in his honor;
Whereas more than 10 States and dozens of communities across the United States
honor the life and legacy of Cesar Estrada Chavez each year on March 31;
Whereas March 31 is recognized as an official State holiday in California,
Colorado, and Texas, and there is growing support to designate the
birthday of Cesar Estrada Chavez as a national day of service to
memorialize his heroism;
Whereas, during his lifetime, Cesar Estrada Chavez was a recipient of the Martin
Luther King Jr. Peace Prize;
Whereas, on August 8, 1994, Cesar Estrada Chavez was posthumously awarded the
Presidential Medal of Freedom;
Whereas, on October 8, 2012, President Barack Obama authorized the Secretary of
the Interior to establish a Cesar Estrada Chavez National Monument in
Keene, California;
Whereas President Joseph R. Biden Jr. honored the life and service of Cesar
Estrada Chavez by proclaiming March 31, 2021, to be `` Cesar Chavez
Day'' and by asking all people of the United States to observe March 31
with service, community, and education programs to honor the enduring
legacy of Cesar Estrada Chavez; and
Whereas the United States should continue the efforts of Cesar Estrada Chavez to
ensure equality, justice, and dignity for all people of the United
States: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) recognizes the accomplishments and example of Cesar
Estrada Chavez, a great hero of the United States;
(2) pledges to promote the legacy of Cesar Estrada Chavez;
and
(3) encourages the people of the United States to
commemorate the legacy of Cesar Estrada Chavez and to always
remember his great rallying cry, ``tSi, se puede!'', which is
Spanish for ``Yes, we can!''.
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