{"id":161932,"date":"2026-04-10T00:49:08","date_gmt":"2026-04-10T00:49:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/161932\/"},"modified":"2026-04-10T00:49:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T00:49:08","slug":"artist-to-paint-over-image-of-cesar-chavez-in-fairhill-mural-with-portrait-of-dolores-huerta","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/161932\/","title":{"rendered":"Artist to paint over image of C\u00e9sar Ch\u00e1vez in Fairhill mural with portrait of Dolores Huerta"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Hispanic group pushed to get\u00a0an image of C\u00e9sar Ch\u00e1vez\u00a0covered up\u00a0on a mural in Fairhill following a New York Times report that accused the civil rights leader of years of sexual abuse. On Saturday, a depiction of Dolores Huerta, one of Ch\u00e1vez’s collaborators, will be painted over the political activist.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Michelle Angela Ortiz is tasked with handling the project. She was a close friend to the original muralist, Jose Ali Paz, who died in 2008, and said creating the design was an emotional undertaking, but focusing on honoring the late artist and Huerta\u2019s activism left her with a “sense of peace.”<\/p>\n

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\nTitled \u201cLatinoam\u00e9rica: Una Lengua, M\u00faltiples Culturas,\u201d which translates to “Latin America: One Language, Multiple Cultures,” the mural on the side of 2863 N. 5th St. was created by Paz and Henry Bermudez in 2005 to represent Hispanic cultures in the city. As it stands now, the artwork shows images of\u00a0Venezuelan political\u00a0leader Sim\u00f3n Bol\u00edvar,\u00a0Chilean\u00a0poets Pablo Neruda and Gabriela Mistral, and Ch\u00e1vez in front of dancers and a tropical background.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\nCh\u00e1vez spearheaded a massive labor movement for farm workers in the 1960s. He and Huerta organized the National Farm Workers Association, which lobbied for better wages, a credit union and unemployment and life insurance for its laborers. Ch\u00e1vez\u00a0participated in dozens of high-profile peaceful protests and hunger strikes that cemented his legacy as an icon of civil rights.\n<\/p>\n

\nLast month, the New York Times published an\u00a0investigation<\/a>\u00a0that uncovered a pattern of abuse and sexual violence by Ch\u00e1vez, whose victims allegedly included Huerta<\/a> and multiple children. Following the report, members of the Hispanic Association of Contractor Enterprises, a commercial development corridor, requested that Mural Arts Philadelphia remove Ch\u00e1vez’s\u00a0likeness from the wall in\u00a0Fairhill.<\/p>\n

\"Maria's\"Maria'sProvided Image\/Mural Arts Philadelphia<\/p>\n

A mural titled ‘Latinoam\u00e9rica: Una Lengua, M\u00faltiples Culturas’ in Fairhill was painted in 2005 to represent Hispanic groups in the city.<\/p>\n

\n\u201cPublic art lives in relationship with the people around it, both in the moment it is created and over time,\u201d Mural Arts wrote in a statement<\/a> on social media last month. \u201cWhat is painted on a wall does not stay fixed in meaning. In light of these allegations, the depiction of Cesar Chavez in this mural must be reconsidered in conversation with the artist and community members.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\nWhen Ortiz saw Mural Arts\u2019 statement, she reached out to Executive Director Jane Golden to recommend that she cover up his portrait with a painting of Huerta.\n<\/p>\n

\n\u201cErasing the image of C\u00e9sar and not having any type of replacement is not fair to the people and to the movement,\u201d Ortiz\u00a0said. \u201cWhat I\u2019m trying to think about is how to have a nuanced conversation around holding our leaders accountable, but still preserving the hard work and dedication of the people that believed in them.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\nFor Ortiz, the biggest challenge was figuring out how to move forward with the project in a way that honors the original artist and his family.\n<\/p>\n

\n\u201cWe’re not erasing the movement, we’re reinforcing it,\u201d she said. \u201cWe’re also preserving the artwork of my dear friend, who exemplifies the very movement that Huerta fought for. \u2026 Jose is part of that story.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\"Jose\"JoseProvided Image\/Paz Family<\/p>\n

Jose Ali Paz, above, was the original artist for the mural in Fairhill.<\/p>\n

Ortiz, a\u00a0South Philly native, met Paz in 2002 just two years after he and his family immigrated from Venezuela, where he worked in a produce processing factory. The two artists worked closely together throughout the 2000s, and Ortiz recalls translating for him during meetings with Mural Arts Philadelphia.\n<\/p>\n

\n\u201cHe was a person full of such light and kindness, but also extremely dedicated, organized and committed to his craft,\u201d she said. \u201cWhat I really admired about him was not just his amazing skill that he had as an artist, but the way he respected me as an equal.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\nAs a way to uphold his legacy, she enlisted the help of Paz\u2019s oldest daughter, Viviana Takfoor, 45, and granddaughter, Annalise, 16, to come up with the mural\u2019s new look and assist with measurements and painting at her studio in South Philly.\n<\/p>\n

\n\u201cAs we were working, it took me back to years ago when I used to sit down and saw my dad transform something into a painting,\u201d\u00a0Viviana\u00a0Takfoor said. \u201cBeing able to share and exchange that missing part of him \u2026 it almost felt like we were all together there with him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Chavez\"ChavezProvided Image\/Michelle Angela Ortiz<\/p>\n

Annalise Takfoor, left, paints with her mother Viviana Takfoor, who is the oldest daughter of the late muralist Jose Ali Paz. They are assisting in the cover-up project.<\/p>\n

Ortiz said watching Paz\u2019s family come together to continue his work was a cathartic experience.\n<\/p>\n

\n\u201cWhen you lose a friend that has so much life in them, you feel that life can be very unfair,\u201d she said. \u201cBut, I keep in touch with his family, I have seen his children grow, his grandchildren play with my son. \u2026 Watching [Annalise], who draws very well and loves the arts. … It just gives me a sense of peace.\u201d<\/p>\n