Cesar Estrada Chavez

Cesar Estrada Chavez was born on March 31, 1927 on a farm near Yuma, Arizona. His family was originally from Northern Mexico (Chihuahua). His parents Librado and Juana Chavez raised their kids in Arizona's Gila valley. Cesar's father worked in his ranch and also owned his own store and pool hall. His father wasn't around a lot because of work so his mother Juana had a lot of influence on him. His mother taught him to be a non-violent person. She told him to turn the other cheek. Also she was a really religious person, a good Christian that also taught him to always help out poor people. In 1929 while the Great Depression Cesar's family lost the ranch. The family traveled to Oxnard, California wear they struggled to put a roof over their head and food on the table. So they moved from town to town in search for work. In 1944 Cesar joined the U.S Navy as a deckhand on a troop transport for 2 years. He joined so he would avoid getting drafted and being forced to fight in real gun fire. After he finished he moved to Delano, California. Their, one day in a theater he sat in an only white section. He didn't move so the police to him to jail and then later they released him because he didn't brake any laws. While he worked in a malt shop called "La Baratita" he entered a grocery wear he met his future wife Helen Fabela. At age 19 they got married and had 8 children. They moved to San Jose and then to Green field wear they tried to grow their own crops but it didn't work out so they moved to Cresent city and back to San Jose. Their Cesar worked as a carpenter and Helen at a limber mill. That wasn't enough for Cesar he wanted to do something that would make a difference and help out poor people. Cesar started to have community meetings and trying to make a difference. A man named Fred Ross herd about Cesar and hired him to work for the Community Service Organization (CSO). Their, he went on strike against growers because they were hiring braceros instead of American citizens. Braceros were people from Mexico who were not America citizens that were brought by the growers in buses to work for them for very low wages, so they had no legal rights. Cesar got in contact with John Carr who worked for the department of employment. Cesar went around to all the farmers collecting application for a job at the Farm Placement Service. It worked for a while but then they fired them after a couple of days. Then Cesar led a strike into Jones Ranch. This ranch was one of the biggest ranches which had braceros working their. Cesar handed out a bunch of referral cards then they all made a pile and burned the cards. The media and TV was their so their was much publicity. Still the growers didn't change their mind. After a month the U.S secretary of labor visited that area to make a speech. Their, during the speech Cesar led a march of about 10,000 people they held a banner of the Virgin of Guadalupe. The police were powerless because their were so many people. Finally the growers began to use the CSO office as a hiring hall. After a 13 month struggle Cesar Chavez had come out successful. Cesar wanted to start a union of his own because the CSO wouldn't give him his own freedom to do what he wanted. So he formed the National Farm Workers Association. Cesar went around California mainly threw the San Juaquin valley trying to get people to join his union. He would offer his help to people by doing favors like