Celebrating marriage equality and remembering Cesar Chavez
On this day when the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the right of all Americans to marry whomever they love, we remember Cesar Chavez. Long before it became more widely accepted, especially among Latinos, during the 1970s Cesar unequivocally supported gay rights. He marched in gay rights parades and spoke at rallies in San Francisco and elsewhere. He attended gay rights events with Harvey Milk. Cesar brought a large contingent of farm workers to participate in a labor-organized march just before the 1984 Democratic National Convention opened in San Francisco. When it was over he assembled the farm workers, told them him he was going to another march that was about to begin in the gay community, and invited the workers to join him. Some did.
Arturo S. Rodriguez, President
United Farm Workers of America
