Phoenix to rename Cesar Chavez Day and starts process to remove labor activist's name from city facilities

Phoenix renames Cesar Chavez Day

The Phoenix City Council has voted to rename Cesar Chavez Day and remove his name from city facilities amid sex abuse allegations recently made against the late labor activist.

PHOENIX - Officials with Phoenix City Councilwoman Betty Guardado's office announced on Wednesday that the council unanimously approved a motion to start the process of removing Cesar Chavez's name and renaming city holidays and facilities, amid recent sexual misconduct allegations against the late labor activist.

What we know:

The city will "immediately begin removing ceremonial signage and initiate formal processes to rename Cesar Chavez Plaza, the Cesar Chavez Library, and other City facilities" as a result of a 9-0 vote.

"Seeing these types of allegations, it was important to act fast," said Councilmember Guardado of District 5.

City staff have been directed to begin this process immediately, including reviewing and removing related artwork throughout the city.

"As a community, we have long recognized Cesar Chavez’s contributions to labor rights and social justice—but due to the gravity of these allegations, we now come together as a community to decide best how to move forward," said Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego.

What they're saying:

Councilmember Guardado says she wants a community-driven process, directing the city to gather public input in the coming weeks and provide regular updates as residents help guide new names for these spaces.

"I will make sure that we get that done, that we have a swift process, and that we include the community in these events," Guardado said.

The council also voted to rename the March 31 holiday as Farmworkers Day. The city has already renamed Cesar Chavez Day on their website. City offices will be closed on that day.

The other side:

Some residents, like Cesar Chavez High School alum and Phoenix resident Feliciano Salinas, say these decisions are being made too soon.

"What's going to happen next? No more Cesar Chavez and get rid of the legacy? I don’t know," Salinas said.

Dig deeper:

Guardado says removing Chavez’s name from city buildings does not diminish the legacy or impact of farmworkers and the movements they inspired.

"He led that movement, but he wasn’t the movement. And I think that is important for folks to be able to see. That every movement is not made of one person. Anything that is successful is a group effort," Guardado said.

The backstory:

Officials with Councilwoman Guardado's office said the action "comes in response to deeply troubling information that has surfaced, prompting the City to reexamine who it formally honors and whether those recognitions reflect the values of the Phoenix community."

According to the Associated Press on March 18, the New York Times found that Chavez groomed and sexually abused young girls who worked in the labor movement.

One of the alleged victims, according to the AP, is Dolores Huerta, who is a labor rights activist in her own right. Huerta, per the report, described two sexual encounters with Chavez, one where she was "manipulated and pressured" and another where she was "forced against my will."

Huerta later said both sexual encounters with Chavez led to pregnancies, which she kept secret, and that she arranged for the children to be raised by other families. "No one knew the full truth about how they were conceived until just a few weeks ago," she said in her statement.

Huerta also said in her statement that she stayed silent for 60 years out of concerns that her words would hurt the farmworker movement.

What's next:

The Phoenix Union School Board is set to hold a special meeting on March 26 where embers will take up wheter to Keep Chavez's name across the district, including a possible renaming of the high school.