Cesar Chavez raped the girls, the star of the workers Dolores Huerta, says the newspaper investigation
Cesar Chavez, a labor leader, is accused of sexually abusing two teenage girls in the 1970s and farm worker leader Dolores Huerta in the 1960s, according to a New York Times investigation.
This newspaper interviewed two women who said they were raped by Chavez—one repeatedly—when they were children.
“Both of these women have battled depression, panic attacks and drug abuse over the years. They kept quiet for decades, afraid to go public because it would tarnish Mr. Chavez’s legacy, but decided in recent months, after being asked by reporters, that their stories counted,” the Times reported.
Huerta told this newspaper that she was raped by Chavez in 1966.
“Mr. Chavez took her out to a secluded grape field in Delano, Calif., parked her and forced her to have sex in the car. She said she chose not to report the attack to the police because of her hatred of the organization, and she was afraid that no one in the union would believe her,” The Times reported.
An investigation by this newspaper found that Chavez fathered four children out of wedlock with three other women and there have been “whispers” about his behavior for years.
A Times investigation reported that several of Chavez’s relatives and former farm labor leaders had known for years about the allegations of sexual misconduct but found no evidence that they made efforts to investigate the charges or acknowledge the victims.
The news comes a day after the United Farm Workers said it would not participate in Chavez’s celebrations because of “disturbing allegations” against him.
The claims against Chavez “are not in line with the principles of our organization. Some of the reports are family matters, not our story that we can talk about or our place to comment on. What is most worrying are the allegations involving the abuse of young women or children. The allegations that women or young girls may be abused are very damaging. We have not received specific reports, and we say that we do not have these allegations,” the union said.
On Tuesday morning, the Cesar Chavez Foundation said in a statement that it is “aware of disturbing allegations that Cesar Chavez engaged in inappropriate sexual behavior with women and children while he was President of the United Farm Workers of America.”
The foundation said it is working with farmworkers union leaders to respond to the allegations and support those who may have been harmed.
Rising to national prominence in the mid-1960s in the San Joaquin Valley, Chavez strengthened public support on their behalf after organizing community groups throughout Central and Southern California. For decades, agricultural workers have lived in substandard housing and paid poor wages. Attempts to organize migrant workers were often violently crushed by farmers and local law enforcement.
But Chavez’s legacy became more and more corrupt as the years went on. Labor victories have been few and far between. His strong criticism of illegal immigration – which Chavez said hindered his efforts to organize unions – has put him at odds with immigration activists. A 2006 Times investigation detailed how dozens of former associates and workers left the UFW because of what they described as Chavez’s increasingly independent ways.
