San Antonio’s Cesar E. Chavez march has been canceled in light of “disturbing allegations” surrounding the event’s namesake, who died in 1993.
Leaders of a local nonprofit alerted City Council members earlier this month that they needed scrap the March 28 event due to a sensitive matter.
On Tuesday, the national Cesar Chavez Foundation released a statement saying it had become aware that Chavez “engaged in inappropriate sexual behavior with women and minors” during his time as president of the United Farm Workers of America.
San Antonians have marched from the West Side to downtown in honor of Chávez’s legacy ever since 1997.
The city’s website called him “a role model and true American hero,” noting that Chavez “loved San Antonio and visited many times to organize and mobilize for La Causa.”
As it stands, Cesar E. Chavez Day, remains a municipal holiday on March 31.
The local nonprofit, Cesar E. Chavez Legacy & Educational Foundation (CECLEF), said the community should take the day to participate in other “civic endeavors” and “continue committing themselves to being of service to others.”
The City of San Antonio budgets $200,000 annually for CECLEF to help fund the march.
Approximately $60,000 of that has been spent to date, according to city spokesman Brian Chasnoff, but the foundation told city leaders that it plans to return the money.
It’s unclear what will happen to other Chavez memorials in San Antonio. The council even renamed historic Durango Boulevard in his honor in 2011.
Andrea Drusch writes about local government for the San Antonio Report. She’s covered politics in Washington, D.C., and Texas for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, National Journal and Politico.
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