Sometimes it may take many years, but finally the lies are exposed, the halos crash to the ground and vindication is awarded to the truth tellers. Pardon me if I am feeling a bit of satisfaction from some shocking revelations about Cesar Chavez – finally! Let me start with some details of personal events from years ago.
In the 1970s I was a dedicated activist of Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) the largest conservative youth activist group in the nation. I became state chairman of the Ohio branch. It was a time of major Leftist activity on college campuses, including antiwar demonstrations and violent riots. It was the beginning of the drive for the radical agenda we face today.
One of the major issues born from that agenda was the claim that immigrant farmworkers were oppressed victims of the capitalist economy that was getting rich as the workers could barely find enough to eat. Out of the oppression a savior emerged.
His name was Cesar Chavez. He was sold to the public as a former migrant worker himself, now dedicated to saving his fellow workers. He was credited with creating the United Farm Workers Union (UFW) as his platform and tactics were marches and boycotts of “Non-Union Lettuce” and “Grape Boycotts!” “Huelga” (strike) was the battle cry. Boones Farm wine became a target.
The Leftist college student forces, Hollywood celebrities, and politicians took up the UFW battle cry and promoted the boycotts. And so, Cesar Chavez used the media, politicians, Hollywood, and college students to change the buying habits of the nation and paint a picture of big business oppressing the poor.
In 1974, when I served as Ohio Chairman of Young Americans for Freedom, I was also running for a seat in the Ohio state legislature. My district was a small slice of Columbus that included the Ohio State University. My opponent was a dedicated left wing radical. Our district contained no farmland other than the agriculture department of the university. Yet the main issue of our campaign became the debate over Cesar Chavez and the United Farm Workers.
In March of that year, Chavez came to the OSU campus. My opponent in the legislative race, Mike Stinziano, was seated next to Chavez on the stage. I was out in front of the auditorium manning a picket line and protest. Eventually, as Chavez prepared to speak, my picketers and I marched inside the auditorium, straight down the aisle and sat on the edge of the stage to continue our protest. Stinziano and I eyed each other in this strange setting for a political campaign.
Chavez began to speak to the wide-eyed college students, teaching them organizing songs and getting them to shout “Huelga.” Then Chavez began to spin a tale of the terrible conditions of the non-union workers in the fields.
He told the students that to avoid hiring his union members, the farmers had developed a mechanical device to pick the grapes. He said it was a huge vacuum designed to suck the grapes off the vine. But, said Chavez in a hushed tone, the machine also sucked up spiders, snakes and rabbits, all to be processed into the wine.
As the crowd began to stir and make faces at the thought of swallowing those spiders and snakes in the wine, Chavez quickly added, “so, if you won’t boycott Boones Farm wine for our cause, at least do it for your own health.” That was Cesar for you… always concerned about the well-being of others!
Two months later, I was invited to Toledo University by the local YAF chapter there to provide rebuttal to a separate appearance by Delores Huerta, the Vice President of the United Farm Workers Union.
She taught the students the same organizing songs, peppered with the chants of “Huelga.” Then she proceeded to tell the same story of the great machine. Only this time she described it, not as a great vacuum cleaner, but as a picker with huge fingers that plucked the grapes along with the snakes, rabbits and spiders.
I pointed out to the audience that if the UFW was going to fan out across the country to tell lies, they should at least tell the same one.
Huerta proceeded to call for a boycott of all “non union” lettuce and grapes. I again pointed out that many of the farm workers picking the grapes were, in fact, members of the Teamsters Union and had been so for many years. I asked when the Teamsters became nonunion and the only response offered was that I was a Teamster lackey! Sigh…
Huerta went on with her well-rehearsed tale of the terrible lives of the non-union farm workers, and demonstrating the success and power of the UFW by claiming that 200,000 farm workers had now joined their union. An interesting trick, since there weren’t 200,000 farm workers in the state.
Here are more facts that reveal the lies told by Cesar Chavez that you will never read in a school textbook, current history book, or see in the film.
For the most part, the workers Chavez picked on lived in nice homes, in stable neighborhoods and made a decent wage. The only migration they made was to move from farm to farm in their area to harvest the crops. It provided them with steady work from farmers who regularly employed them. At night, they slept in their own beds.
What both Chavez and Hureta failed to tell their audiences was:
All of those lies gave Chavez fame, political power and holidays in his name. I knew each fact to be true and did all I could to expose his fraud. But, as I mentioned at the beginning of this report, I am finally feeling vindicated in my decades-long battle to expose Ceaser Chavez and his fake crusade. Yes! And the vindication just came from the most unexpected source – The New York Times!
According to the Times report, Chavez, the poolroom thug was also a pedophile and sexual predator! The paper interviewed more than 60 people, including his top aides at the time. And the Times reviewed hundreds of pages of union records, confidential emails, photos, and hours of audio recordings. The paper found that several girls as young as 12 and 13 were forced into sexual situations with Chavez, right in his office. There were many who admired Chavez and worked in the UFW office as volunteers. He preyed on them. Two of these young girls, now in their 60s, have finally come forward and told their stories. They are Ana Murguia and Debra Rojas. In both cases, their parents were Chavez supporters who trusted him to protect their daughters.
But that’s not all. Evidence also shows Chavez forced several adult women into sexual situations as well, resulting in at least four illegitimate children. Incredibly, one of those women was Delorus Huerta, his UFW Vice President. She had two of his illegitimate children to which she secretly gave birth and hid from the public. Every one of these women today carry huge emotional scars caused by this thug, and that’s why they are finally speaking out – to gain peace of mind in dealing with the memory of his actions.
Once again – this came from an extensive report in the New York Times!! It’s not possible to label that a “right-wing hate rag!” Finally, the lying cheat who cared nothing for the oppressed has been exposed. Even the United Farm Workers Union issued a statement saying it would not take part in any activities celebrating Chavez’s birthday. Several states, including California, are dropping holidays in honor of him. Now let’s get rid of those streets named after him. Cesar Chavez is being relegated to the trash heap of history where he belongs. Vindication feels good.
Author Tom DeWeese is founder and president of the American Policy Center and is an internationally recognized expert on the issue of Sustainable Development and its attack on private property. He is author of three books, including Now Tell Me I Was Wrong, ERASE, and Sustainable: the WAR on Free Enterprise, Private Property, and Individuals.
Featured image is attributed to the Los Angeles Times, May 3, 1971. UCLA Library Digital Collections: https://digital.library.ucla.edu/catalog/ark:/21198/zz0002w69c
In the 1970s I was a dedicated activist of Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) the largest conservative youth activist group in the nation. I became state chairman of the Ohio branch. It was a time of major Leftist activity on college campuses, including antiwar demonstrations and violent riots. It was the beginning of the drive for the radical agenda we face today.
One of the major issues born from that agenda was the claim that immigrant farmworkers were oppressed victims of the capitalist economy that was getting rich as the workers could barely find enough to eat. Out of the oppression a savior emerged.
His name was Cesar Chavez. He was sold to the public as a former migrant worker himself, now dedicated to saving his fellow workers. He was credited with creating the United Farm Workers Union (UFW) as his platform and tactics were marches and boycotts of “Non-Union Lettuce” and “Grape Boycotts!” “Huelga” (strike) was the battle cry. Boones Farm wine became a target.
The Leftist college student forces, Hollywood celebrities, and politicians took up the UFW battle cry and promoted the boycotts. And so, Cesar Chavez used the media, politicians, Hollywood, and college students to change the buying habits of the nation and paint a picture of big business oppressing the poor.
In 1974, when I served as Ohio Chairman of Young Americans for Freedom, I was also running for a seat in the Ohio state legislature. My district was a small slice of Columbus that included the Ohio State University. My opponent was a dedicated left wing radical. Our district contained no farmland other than the agriculture department of the university. Yet the main issue of our campaign became the debate over Cesar Chavez and the United Farm Workers.
In March of that year, Chavez came to the OSU campus. My opponent in the legislative race, Mike Stinziano, was seated next to Chavez on the stage. I was out in front of the auditorium manning a picket line and protest. Eventually, as Chavez prepared to speak, my picketers and I marched inside the auditorium, straight down the aisle and sat on the edge of the stage to continue our protest. Stinziano and I eyed each other in this strange setting for a political campaign.
Chavez began to speak to the wide-eyed college students, teaching them organizing songs and getting them to shout “Huelga.” Then Chavez began to spin a tale of the terrible conditions of the non-union workers in the fields.
He told the students that to avoid hiring his union members, the farmers had developed a mechanical device to pick the grapes. He said it was a huge vacuum designed to suck the grapes off the vine. But, said Chavez in a hushed tone, the machine also sucked up spiders, snakes and rabbits, all to be processed into the wine.
As the crowd began to stir and make faces at the thought of swallowing those spiders and snakes in the wine, Chavez quickly added, “so, if you won’t boycott Boones Farm wine for our cause, at least do it for your own health.” That was Cesar for you… always concerned about the well-being of others!
Two months later, I was invited to Toledo University by the local YAF chapter there to provide rebuttal to a separate appearance by Delores Huerta, the Vice President of the United Farm Workers Union.
She taught the students the same organizing songs, peppered with the chants of “Huelga.” Then she proceeded to tell the same story of the great machine. Only this time she described it, not as a great vacuum cleaner, but as a picker with huge fingers that plucked the grapes along with the snakes, rabbits and spiders.
I pointed out to the audience that if the UFW was going to fan out across the country to tell lies, they should at least tell the same one.
Huerta proceeded to call for a boycott of all “non union” lettuce and grapes. I again pointed out that many of the farm workers picking the grapes were, in fact, members of the Teamsters Union and had been so for many years. I asked when the Teamsters became nonunion and the only response offered was that I was a Teamster lackey! Sigh…
Huerta went on with her well-rehearsed tale of the terrible lives of the non-union farm workers, and demonstrating the success and power of the UFW by claiming that 200,000 farm workers had now joined their union. An interesting trick, since there weren’t 200,000 farm workers in the state.
Here are more facts that reveal the lies told by Cesar Chavez that you will never read in a school textbook, current history book, or see in the film.
- There is no evidence that Cesar Chavez ever worked in a farm field in his life. He was a poolroom thug selected and hand picket by radical communist organizer Saul Alinsky to create unrest among farm workers.
- Chavez was well trained in the Alinsky propaganda and organizing techniques that are, still today, recognized as the most effective tools to misdirect and force radical ideas into the general population.
- Cesar Chavez never tried to organize real migrant workers – those who had no real home, who carried their belongings on their backs and were basically nomads on the road. Those were not his true focus.
For the most part, the workers Chavez picked on lived in nice homes, in stable neighborhoods and made a decent wage. The only migration they made was to move from farm to farm in their area to harvest the crops. It provided them with steady work from farmers who regularly employed them. At night, they slept in their own beds.
- Chavez never organized “non-union” workers. They were already members of the Teamsters Union. What Chavez sold to the nation as a fight against “non-union” lettuce and grapes was really a jurisdictional fight against the Teamsters. Pretty hard to call the Teamsters “non-union.”
What both Chavez and Hureta failed to tell their audiences was:
- How the UFW formed “goon squads” designed to intimidate the non-UFW workers in the fields by threatening them with physical harm if they continued to work.
- How the UFW used Catholic priests to intimidate the deeply religious workers by calling them scabs.
- How the majority of those on the UFW picket lines were actually college students bussed in from across the country.
- How UFW negotiations resulted in less pay for farm workers.
All of those lies gave Chavez fame, political power and holidays in his name. I knew each fact to be true and did all I could to expose his fraud. But, as I mentioned at the beginning of this report, I am finally feeling vindicated in my decades-long battle to expose Ceaser Chavez and his fake crusade. Yes! And the vindication just came from the most unexpected source – The New York Times!
According to the Times report, Chavez, the poolroom thug was also a pedophile and sexual predator! The paper interviewed more than 60 people, including his top aides at the time. And the Times reviewed hundreds of pages of union records, confidential emails, photos, and hours of audio recordings. The paper found that several girls as young as 12 and 13 were forced into sexual situations with Chavez, right in his office. There were many who admired Chavez and worked in the UFW office as volunteers. He preyed on them. Two of these young girls, now in their 60s, have finally come forward and told their stories. They are Ana Murguia and Debra Rojas. In both cases, their parents were Chavez supporters who trusted him to protect their daughters.
But that’s not all. Evidence also shows Chavez forced several adult women into sexual situations as well, resulting in at least four illegitimate children. Incredibly, one of those women was Delorus Huerta, his UFW Vice President. She had two of his illegitimate children to which she secretly gave birth and hid from the public. Every one of these women today carry huge emotional scars caused by this thug, and that’s why they are finally speaking out – to gain peace of mind in dealing with the memory of his actions.
Once again – this came from an extensive report in the New York Times!! It’s not possible to label that a “right-wing hate rag!” Finally, the lying cheat who cared nothing for the oppressed has been exposed. Even the United Farm Workers Union issued a statement saying it would not take part in any activities celebrating Chavez’s birthday. Several states, including California, are dropping holidays in honor of him. Now let’s get rid of those streets named after him. Cesar Chavez is being relegated to the trash heap of history where he belongs. Vindication feels good.
Author Tom DeWeese is founder and president of the American Policy Center and is an internationally recognized expert on the issue of Sustainable Development and its attack on private property. He is author of three books, including Now Tell Me I Was Wrong, ERASE, and Sustainable: the WAR on Free Enterprise, Private Property, and Individuals.
Featured image is attributed to the Los Angeles Times, May 3, 1971. UCLA Library Digital Collections: https://digital.library.ucla.edu/catalog/ark:/21198/zz0002w69c
