Voices from the March (Cesar Chavez)

On Cesar Chavez March to Merced

By Jim Miller on April 2

The day started well with the early morning sun illuminating the glistening green fields around Planada after a night of rain. We gathered in the same park where Cesar Chavez had stopped on his historic march back in the sixties and were sent off with words of encouragement from one of Chavez’s fellow marchers who noted that our cause was also about the need for hope and dignity for working people. Then a brother from the UFW recited the farm worker’s prayer and we did the solidarity clap that originated with their cause decades earlier.

Nearly 250 Strong on Cesar Chavez's Birthday

By 260 Miles of Blogging on April 2

Our march from Planada to Merced was our largest since the kickoff events in Bakersfield on March 5. What was remarkable about our march 2 days ago, more than 3 weeks since we first began our journey, was how it developed. We didn't start with a throng of people but by the time we were approaching Sierra Presbyterian Church we were nearly 250 strong. Somehow drums were drumming. Somehow megaphones were blaring call and response. Somehow our march grew into something that I had never been a part of before.

Jennifer Cost: AFT local 1931 member and San Diego Mesa College professor of English

By Jennifer Cost on March 31

Marching these two days, I feel something powerful stirring in people. This march is the beginning of something remarkable and unstoppable. I drove up from San Diego on Monday with another teacher, Berta Harris, and I thought we’d join people and create a good sight: marchers with a noble cause.

Clay Gallardo: Student at Los Angeles Valley College

By Clay Gallardo on March 31

Hello. My name is Clay Gallardo. I am a student at Los Angeles Valley College and an American Federation of Teachers (AFT) intern. For the past 2 semesters, I have been organizing students at rallies and Town Hall meetings, calling attention to the budget cuts and its effects on our education system.

In Delano, Cesar Chavez Park and 40 Acres

By 260 Miles of Blogging on March 9

Today, we walked 7.6 miles from McFarland Middle School to Cesar Chavez Park in Delano. Although it was cold, we moved really quickly and arrived on the outskirts of Delano way ahead of schedule. Just before we broke for lunch, who did we see but our friend Hilda again!

Following Cesar's footsteps

By Jenn Laskin on March 9

Today we are marching from McFarland to Delano, home of the United Farmworkers Union. The farmworkers struggled long and hard to build their union. They stood up against politically powerful land owners, and they did it without the protections of the National Labor Relations Act -- meaning it was perfectly legal for owners to retaliate against them for joining a union. It took marches to Sacramento and national boycotts to change the law in California to give farmworkers the right to collectively bargain.