As a young child I marched with Caesar Chavez in 1966 from Delano to Sacramento. My uncles were farm workers in the central valley in the 1960s and worked side by side with Caesar in the fields and in the struggle.
I heard people singing “De Colores” and yelling “Si Se Puede” or “yes we can” as we marched behind an image of the Virgin of Guadalupe as the lead banner. Mostly the younger kids rode in the buses and walked a little. I remember eating bean burritos next to the bus with complete strangers. In the valley most American Indians worked the fields or starved. My uncles heard Caesar’s message and were compelled to help change the world.
My Uncle Joe Reyes and Dolores Huerta were part of the inner circle of the United Farm Workers (UFW). As a relative I was able to spend time at “La Paz,” the United Farm Workers’ compound in the Tehachapi Mountains and Caesar’s home until the day he died on April 23, 1993.
Since I marched in the ‘60s I am eligible to live at the compound and attend college there, something to this day I have not taken advantage of. I remember eating meals with Caesar at the table. He was such a humble, mild-mannered, human being who laughed heartily at a good joke, One thing that Caesar said that resounds to this day is, “The truest form of courage is to sacrifice ourselves for others in a totally non-violent struggle for justice.” Caesar practiced this throughout his life, sacrificing his body through the many fasts that he endured for the cause.
I can also remember picketing with my cousins in front of Safeway stores carrying placards while Caesar, shouted “Huelga” or “on strike”. I was at the cemetery in Delano as they laid this great man to rest. Everyone present from dignitaries to the common worker had tears in their eyes as Mariachis sang “de colores.” We could already feel the loss of a great spokesman for the farm worker and common man.
I learned many lessons as a child, teen-ager and young man listening to Caesar speak. One important lesson that I learned was that non-violence is a very important tool when used in acts of civil disobedience, and that standing up for the right thing is something that we must all do together. I was taught at an early age about community activism and non-violence, and for the most part have been involved — from the first step that I took on the journey from Delano to Sacramento. Though the focus has changed from the farm workers’ struggle to the continuing struggle of the American Indian, the fact is that Caesar Chavez’ teachings and outlook helped shape my life from a young age, and I will always carry fond memories of those days marching behind the banner of the UFW eagle and the Virgin of Guadalupe.
That march led to my living on Alcatraz as a teenage in 1969 and 1970, fighting for Native rights at the sides of my uncles, cousins and friends during the takeover of the former federal prison by Native tribes from across the U.S. After we left the island, my uncle moved on to the Wounded Knee takeover in 1971, I was not allowed to participate because of my age and the level of danger involved, but that has not stopped me being involved in the fight for justice for all people, especially the minority class that I now belong to, incarcerated Americans. Through the teachings that I have learned attending classes in the T.R.U.S.T. and No More Tears there are still positive non-violent means that we can take to change our surroundings and the lives of all who share this planet with us in a positive manner. To quote the sayings of my first march for justice, “Viva La Huelga” and “Si se puede”, or in other words, “Yes We Can”.
