March for Justice to travel along César E. Chávez Boulevard
By Josh Baugh
Photo: Express-News Graphic
Artist Abel Ortiz gestures as he carries one of his paintings depicting labor and civil rights leader Cesar Chavez during the 15th annual Cesar Chavez March for Justice on Saturday, Mar. 26, 2011. Kin Man Hui/kmhui@express-news.net
Artist Abel Ortiz gestures as he carries one of his paintings depicting labor and civil rights leader Cesar Chavez during the 15th annual Cesar Chavez March for Justice on Saturday, Mar. 26, 2011. Kin Man Hui/kmhui@express-news.net
Araceli Herrera (center) shakes hands with Dolores Huerta, co-founder of United Farm Workers of America with famed labor rights leaders Cesar Chavez, during the 15th annual Cesar Chavez March for Justice on Saturday, Mar. 26, 2011. Herrera belongs to the National Domestic Workers Alliance and wanted to personally meet Huerta along the march. Kin Man Hui/kmhui@express-news.net
Schedule
5:15 p.m. Wednesday: City Council proclamation, City Council Chambers
6 p.m. Friday: Remembering César E. Chávez film presentation, 1300 Guadalupe St.
2 p.m. March 24: Labor Tribute to the Legacy of César E. Chávez Wreath Laying Ceremony, 1023 Guadalupe St.
7 a.m. March 25: Mass for Farm Workers, San Fernando Cathedral, 115 W. Main Plaza
7 p.m. March 26: Retrospective Look into La Causa, Non-violence and Struggle for Justice — a conversation with Jaime P. Martinez, César E. Chávez Service Center, 1504 E. Commerce St. 7 p.m. March 27: For the Love of César Eastside Hospitality Event, Greater Faith Institutional Church, 3514 Martin Luther King Drive
5:30 p.m. March 28: Student Art Exhibition and Awards Presentation, César E. Chávez Service Center, 1504 E. Commerce St.
6 p.m. March 29: César E. Chávez Scholarship Recipients Awards Dinner, La Villita Assembly Hall, 401 Villita (For tickets and information, contact Jaime Martinez at 210-842-9339)
8 a.m. March 31: César E. Chávez March for Justice, corner of Guadalupe and South Brazos streets
For more information about the events, visit www.sanantonio.gov/chavezmarch.
For the first time, the annual César E. Chávez March for Justice will travel along the boulevard named in honor of the civil rights leader.
Holding iconic photos and banners depicting civil rights advocates, organizers on Monday announced that Paul Chávez, son of the march’s namesake, will be this year’s grand marshal. The 16th annual march will take place March 31.
Marchers will begin on the near West Side and finish at the Alamo, walking a couple of blocks on César E. Chávez Boulevard. Chávez’s namesake thoroughfare got its name last year when the City Council voted to rename Durango Boulevard.
The action wasn’t without controversy. The San Antonio Conservation Society sued the city in an attempt to block the name change, citing its mission to preserve the historic nature of the original city.
A state district judge denied the society’s request for a temporary injunction in July, and the city began replacing street signs. The two sides later settled the suit.
March organizers this year are highlighting local youths, who are the future of the movement, said Jaime Martinez, chairman and founder of the César E. Chávez Legacy and Educational Foundation.
Martinez applauded the efforts of the students who’ve helped organize this year’s march.
“These students have sacrificed hours and hours” strategizing and preparing for the annual event, he said. “Now we’re in the 11th hour.”
A series of events surrounding Chávez’s legacy begins Wednesday with a council proclamation.
March organizers are encouraging participants to bring canned goods to donate to the San Antonio Food Bank. The donations will serve two purposes: to help hungry people and to honor the work that’s still done today by farmworkers.
Chávez was a migrant farmworker before becoming a national civil rights and labor leader. In 1962, he founded what’s now the United Farm Workers.
Monday, on the steps of City Hall, volleys of “Sí, se puede!” intertwined with announcements of the march and the reason it’s important. People waved both U.S flags and the red flag of the United Farm Workers of America.
Several speakers, including a few politicians running in Democratic primaries, lavished with praise Martinez, who organizes the march each year.
Joaquín Castro — who stood in at the news conference for his twin brother, Mayor Julián Castro — said Chávez left a legacy to be both cherished and honored.
“His legacy to us cannot be overstated,” said Castro, who’s running for Congress. “We should always remember he was a fighter for the people.”
jbaugh@express-news.net