| 2 | 3 | | |
|---|
| 3 | 4 | | |
|---|
| 4 | 5 | | R E S O L U T I O N |
|---|
| 5 | 6 | | WHEREAS, A passionate advocate for social justice and civil |
|---|
| 6 | 7 | | rights for the poor and disenfranchised, Cesar Chavez was a true |
|---|
| 7 | 8 | | American hero, and the anniversary of his birth provides a fitting |
|---|
| 8 | 9 | | opportunity to remember and honor his many contributions; and |
|---|
| 9 | 10 | | WHEREAS, Born on March 31, 1927, near Yuma, Arizona, Cesar |
|---|
| 10 | 11 | | Chavez was 10 years old when his family lost their farm in the Great |
|---|
| 11 | 12 | | Depression and became migrant farmworkers; throughout his youth and |
|---|
| 12 | 13 | | into his adulthood, Mr. Chavez traveled across the Southwest, |
|---|
| 13 | 14 | | laboring in the fields and vineyards and attending more than 30 |
|---|
| 14 | 15 | | different schools by the time he was in the eighth grade; and |
|---|
| 15 | 16 | | WHEREAS, After serving in the U.S. Navy for two years, he |
|---|
| 16 | 17 | | returned home to marry Helen Fabela, whom he had met while working |
|---|
| 17 | 18 | | in the vineyards of central California; settling with his wife in |
|---|
| 18 | 19 | | the East San Jose barrio of Sal Si Puedes, he returned to farming to |
|---|
| 19 | 20 | | support his young family; and |
|---|
| 20 | 21 | | WHEREAS, Witnessing firsthand the hardships and injustices |
|---|
| 21 | 22 | | of farmworker life, Mr. Chavez joined the Community Service |
|---|
| 22 | 23 | | Organization, a prominent Latino civil rights group, in 1952; while |
|---|
| 23 | 24 | | with the CSO, he coordinated voter registration drives and |
|---|
| 24 | 25 | | conducted campaigns against racial and economic discrimination; in |
|---|
| 25 | 26 | | the late 1950s and early 1960s, he served as the CSO's national |
|---|
| 26 | 27 | | director; and |
|---|
| 27 | 28 | | WHEREAS, Determined to create an organization that would |
|---|
| 28 | 29 | | protect and serve farmworkers, he resigned from the CSO in 1962, |
|---|
| 29 | 30 | | leaving the security of a regular paycheck, and moved with his wife |
|---|
| 30 | 31 | | and eight children to Delano, where he founded the first successful |
|---|
| 31 | 32 | | farmworkers union in American history; originally called the |
|---|
| 32 | 33 | | National Farm Workers Association, the organization later became |
|---|
| 33 | 34 | | known as the United Farm Workers of America; and |
|---|
| 34 | 35 | | WHEREAS, For more than three decades, Mr. Chavez led this |
|---|
| 35 | 36 | | groundbreaking organization by effecting change through peaceful |
|---|
| 36 | 37 | | tactics such as fasts, boycotts, strikes, and pilgrimages; his |
|---|
| 37 | 38 | | union's efforts influenced and inspired millions of Americans, |
|---|
| 38 | 39 | | forging a diverse national coalition of students, middle-class |
|---|
| 39 | 40 | | consumers, religious groups, and minorities in a hard-won struggle |
|---|
| 40 | 41 | | to achieve fair wages, medical coverage, pension benefits, humane |
|---|
| 41 | 42 | | living conditions, and perhaps most important, dignity and respect |
|---|
| 42 | 43 | | for the hundreds of thousands of farmworkers across the country; |
|---|
| 43 | 44 | | and |
|---|
| 44 | 45 | | WHEREAS, In 1994, a year after his death on April 23, 1993, |
|---|
| 45 | 46 | | his widow accepted the Presidential Medal of Freedom, America's |
|---|
| 46 | 47 | | highest civilian honor, on behalf of her late husband; since his |
|---|
| 47 | 48 | | death, communities across the nation have chosen to pay homage to |
|---|
| 48 | 49 | | Mr. Chavez by naming schools, parks, streets, and libraries, as |
|---|
| 49 | 50 | | well as scholarships and awards, in his honor; and |
|---|
| 50 | 51 | | WHEREAS, His motto in life, "si se puede," or "it can be |
|---|
| 51 | 52 | | done," embodies the legacy that Cesar Chavez has left for the |
|---|
| 52 | 53 | | world's benefit, and his principles of equality, justice, and |
|---|
| 53 | 54 | | dignity for all Americans remain as essential and as relevant today |
|---|
| 54 | 55 | | as they were when he began his important life's work; now, |
|---|
| 55 | 56 | | therefore, be it |
|---|
| 56 | 57 | | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 84th Texas |
|---|
| 57 | 58 | | Legislature hereby recognize the month beginning March 31, 2016, as |
|---|
| 58 | 59 | | Cesar Chavez Farmworker Appreciation Month and encourage all Texans |
|---|
| 59 | 60 | | to reflect on and celebrate the extraordinary achievements of this |
|---|
| 60 | 61 | | inspiring humanitarian. |
|---|