Honoring the Legacy of Cesar Chavez
March 28, 2025
Dear Campus Community,
This Monday, 51萝莉 will celebrate the birth and legacy of civil rights leader . Cesar Chavez Day is a day of service, as well as a time to remember the importance
of uniting to make our country stronger and more prosperous.
As co-founder of the National Farm Workers Association, Chavez sought to increase
wages, and provide unemployment insurance and collective bargaining rights for farm
workers, among other improvements.
Much like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Chavez had dreams of a better world and shared
them in his speeches. In his 鈥淎ddress to the Commonwealth Club of California鈥� in 1984,
he of savage conditions facing farm workers, who had an average life expectancy of 49
years. Chavez鈥� motivation to make a difference came from watching what his parents
experienced as migrant farmworkers in California.
鈥淭hat dream, that vision, grew from my own experience with racism, with hope, with
the desire to be treated fairly and to see my people treated as human beings and not
as chattel,鈥� he said.
Through non-violent tactics such as boycotts, pickets and strikes, he fulfilled his
dreams and his mission.
In observance of the holiday, all Chaffey campuses will be closed. Normal schedules
will resume Tuesday April 1.
I wish you all a restful long weekend.
Sincerely,
Henry D. Shannon, Ph.D.
Superintendent/President
