See Also:
Beginning of a FAMOUS Hero: The Martin Luther King Jr. Story.
Life Lesson #24 – Stand for Something.
Growing up in Arizona in the early 1930s was difficult for Cesar Chavez and his parents. Because of the Great Depression, his father lost the family business and soon had no work or money. In 1937, his family had to move to California to find work.
During those young years, he began to see how unfair people could be to each other, but he also learned many things from his mother. She believed that violence and selfishness were wrong, and she taught these lessons to all of her children.
As Cesar grew older, he went to work picking grapes in vineyards, along with many, many others. He began to see how unfairly the workers were treated, and how they weren’t paid enough for their work. The owners of the companies were taking great advantage of the workers. So in addition to working hard everyday, Cesar started organizing workers to demand pay raises and better working conditions. They did not want to get something for nothing, they just wanted to be paid fairly for their work, and treated with the respect they and their families deserved. Later, he began to help others all over the country. He formed an organization called the National Farm Workers Association, which today is called United Farm Workers. But he went further, much further. Cesar also began to work hard to change laws about what chemicals could be used on crops and which ones could not, because some were just too dangerous. In 1994, after Cesar Chavez had died, the President of the United States presented the Medal of Freedom, to his wife, Helen. Yes, that little boy named Cesar, who saw how unfairly workers in the fields were treated, grew up to help millions of people, and for that, he became a very great HERO.
– Jim Lord