California Governor Gavin Newsom signed legislation Thursday to rename the state’s March 31 holiday from César Chavez Day to Farmworkers Day, a move aimed at reconciling the Latino labor icon’s legacy with recent explosive sexual abuse allegations. The state Senate had earlier approved the bill with bipartisan support.
The change follows public revelations last week that Chavez allegedly sexually abused girls and women during his time building a major farmworker labor rights movement in California’s agricultural heartland in the 1960s. Among those who came forward with accusations was Dolores Huerta, who co-led the movement that eventually became the United Farm Workers.
