*Previously Recorded by Phyllis Schlafly // March 2011*
Today is Cesar Chavez Day, the anniversary of his birthday. You may not know who he is, but nine states recognize March 31 as an official holiday called Cesar Chavez Day: Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, New Mexico, Texas, Utah and Wisconsin. The National Education Association passes a resolution nearly every year calling on Congress to give Cesar Chavez a national holiday.
That’s a very interesting idea, and I’d like to tell you why.
Back in the 1970s, Cesar Chavez was a Mexican American leftwing union organizer for farm workers. He became an historical icon for liberals and Latinos, symbolizing militant support for workers based on grassroots organizing and his slogan “Yes we can!” He is honored by the liberals for improving the wages and working conditions of farm laborers.
There is one interesting fact about Cesar Chavez that the liberals don’t talk about. He was committed to stopping illegal immigration because he recognized it is so hurtful to U.S. workers. He organized marches through California and to the Mexican border to protest the entry of illegal aliens. Cesar Chavez demanded that the federal government close the border. He set up a line along the U.S.-Mexican border to prevent Mexicans from entering the United States illegally and taking the jobs of Mexican farm workers who came here legally. He reported illegal immigrants to immigration officials, and he put his brother in charge of border patrols much like some so-called Minutemen have done in recent years. He even favored deporting illegal aliens.
Yes, Cesar Chavez was an activist liberal, but he had the welfare of honest farm workers at heart, and I think we should honor him for speaking out against the way illegal aliens are taking the jobs of millions of Americans today.
