by: Anna Padilla
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – Two farm-working civil rights activists are being celebrated beginning this week, one of whom is from New Mexico. The 28th annual César Chávez Celebration kicks off on the late activist’s birthday, Mar. 31 and will end April 10 on Dolores Huerta’s birthday. The event is put on by the Recuerda a César Chávez Committee and will be held online.
César Chávez and Dolores Huerta, an activist from northern New Mexico, are known for leading a movement to bring better working conditions and civil rights to farm and migrant workers, a movement still on-going today in New Mexico’s own farm-working communities. Chavez passed away in 1993 but Huerta is still very involved in national groups working to create a safer experience for farm workers.
Committee Co-Chair Linda Benavidez said this is the second year in a row where they’ve had to hold the event online, but they’re determined to continue educating and advocating in any way they can. Mar. 31 will be an online celebration of Cesar Chavez’s birthday, beginning with a video of two student migrant workers who are currently attending the University of New Mexico and will end with local musicians from all across the state singing “Las Mañanitas.”
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April 7 and 8 will be the Dolores Huerta Days of Service and will focus on educating students about the aspects of farm working and civil rights. Every day they will post information about Chávez and the work that he did on the committee’s social media. On April 9 is the César Chávez Fiesta Justicia and will include performances by Nosotros and New Mexico poet laureate Levi Romero. They partnered with Casa Barelas to have a trailer concert through Barelas which will begin at 5 p.m. April 10 will be the dedication of Avendia Dolores Huerta, which intersects with Avendia Cesar Chavez.
Benavidez believes that many people began understanding the importance of farmworkers during the pandemic. “I think where it became highlighted was during this pandemic because without them, I don’t think any of us really could have survived. They sacrificed themselves and went out there to manage the fields, pick the food, got it to where we needed it to be but yet, they were not able to get vaccinations. They were not able to call into work and say ‘I don’t really feel good.’ A lot of times they went out without the PPE,” Benavidez said.
The event begins on the heels of National Farmworker Awareness Week, a week of action for students and community members to honor farmworkers’ important contributions and to raise awareness about the issues they face. One of the many local organizations the Recuerda a César Chávez Committee works with is the Farmworker Awareness Week initiative at the University of New Mexico, whose focus is to bring attention to the unjust conditions seasonal migrant farmworkers face and begin a dialogue with the community to make positive change.
Diego Salicido with the UNM FAW project said because New Mexico’s industry is high in the production of chile and onion, there are many farm workers in the community that he believes UNM doesn’t know about. “Because of the pandemic, they were hit especially hard with lack of protections that weren’t in place. They work in crowded facilities in long work hours and they don’t have overtime, they don’t have health insurance. They were vulnerable before and now the pandemic didn’t help. I hope the community can learn during these events and take action to protect these people providing food on our plate,” Salicido said.
For more information on events, visit the Recuerda a César Chávez Committee’s Facebook page or their website.
Anna Lisa Padilla 