Life and Legacy of Cesar Chavez

Lesson Plan: LIFE AND LEGACY OF CÉSAR CHÁVEZ

COMPLETE THE STORY: Fill in the blanks using words from the word bank.

BOYCOTT       CAMPS        CIVIL RIGHTS        DOLORES HUERTA     
FARM         GRAPE        NONVIOLENT        LABOR UNION     
MIGRANT        SACRAMENTO        STRIKES      
UNITED FARM WORKERS                       GANDHI

César Chávez was an activist who worked to improve the lives of ……………….…………………. workers. He knew about the problems these people faced because he was a ……………………………..……. worker from the time he was a teenager. Forced to leave school and work after his father was injured, César moved around the country harvesting seasonal crops. Migrant workers often had to live in government …………………….……………. without clean water or bathrooms and they didn’t make much money.

Chávez returned to field work after serving in the military and became the leader of a Latino-

American group. With the help of …………………………………….…….. he founded the National Farm Workers Association, a ………………………………….. that sought to improve wages and working conditions for its members.

The ………………………………….. tactics Chávez used to accomplish his goals were inspired by …………………………………… These tactics included ……………………………………, boycotts and protest marches. In 1965, the National Farm Workers Association joined with striking ……………………………………. pickers in California. Chávez organized a protest march on …………………………………….., California's capital. He convinced millions of Americans to ……………………………………… grapes in support of the workers. When the strike finally ended in 1970, the workers had achieved their goal of improved working conditions. Other farm workers across the country formed unions and held ·strikes. Several unions eventually joined together to form the ……………………………………, which still exists today.

Chávez continued to work for farm workers' rights until his death in 1993. Today his birthday is celebrated as a holiday in eight states.

See the Video about César Chávez's Life, answer the questions below and debate:

Questions about the video:

1. WHAT CHARACTERISED THE 60s?
2. WHAT WAS CESAR CHAVEZ DEMANDING?
3. WHAT DID HE BECOME WELL-KNOWN FOR?
4. WHEN AND WHERE WAS HE BORN?
5. WHY DID HE HAVE TO BECOME A MIGRANT WORKER?
6. WHERE DID HIS FAMILY MOVE?
7. WHEN DID HE MARRY?
8. WHEN DID HE BEGIN TO STRUGGLE FOR A SOCIAL CHANGE?
9. WHEN WAS THE NATIONAL FARM WORKER ASSOCIATION BORN?
10. WHO DID HE ASSOCIATE WITH TO FORM THE UNITED FARM WORKERS?
11. WHAT DID HE EXPOSE TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE?
12. WHAT DID HE FIGHT FOR?
13. WHEN DID WORKERS GO ON STRIKE?
14. WHAT DID CHAVEZ DECIDE TO DO WHEN ONE WORKER WAS KILLED BY THE POLICE DURING THE STRIKE? WHY?
15. WHAT DID HE DO IN 1968?
16. WHAT DID HE ASK PEOPLE TO BOYCOTT?
17. WHEN DID HE GET WHAT HIS MOVEMENT HAD BEEN FIGHTING FOR?
18. WHAT PROVED HE WAS ALSO CONCERNED ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT?
19. WHEN DID HE DIE?
20. WHO RECEIVED A PRIZE TO HONOUR HIM AFTER HIS DEATH?

Your opinion. Discuss in teams:

1. Why do you think these workers succeeded in getting what they were demanding?

2. What do you think SOLIDARITY meant for them and what could it have consisted of -mention facts-?

3. If we fought to get better working conditions only for the teachers of our school, would it be a progress or would it be selfishness and individualism? And if this were so only for our province? or for our territory? or for just one profession and not for all the workers of the country? And if we fought just for improvement and justice in our country and not for all the countries of the world, would that mean solidarity? If my better conditions implied worse conditions for another worker, would that be honest and fair?

4. What steps would be necessary to take at present in order to achieve full-employment and fair working conditions?

5. What's our role in this fight for justice and peace?