The cause behind the holiday

By REBECCA MARTIN

It’s the gift every college student loves — a state holiday and no school.

Visitors to Fresno State will find the campus barren, with scarcely a person in sight.

It’s perhaps the most precious thing any college student can receive, besides that often-dreamed-of moment that begins with a professor saying, “I’ve decided not give you that 200-question, obscenely hard final?”

So hooray! Thanks for the extra sleep, for letting us catch up on our sorely missed daytime television. Thank you to — uh, who are we supposed to be thanking again?

In case you were too excited about the day off to notice why, last Thursday was Cesar Chavez Day.

California began celebrating March 31, Chavez’s birthday, in the year 2000. He’s the first Mexican-American, as well as labor leader, to be recognized with a state holiday.

Chavez is responsible for beginning the prominent labor union known as the United Farm Workers. The formation of the UFW began with Chavez being the general director of a group called the Community Service Organization between the years of 1958 and 1962.

From there, he formed the National Farm Workers by joining with an already established group, the Agricultural Workers.

Chavez helped change the policy of the government and agricultural leaders by using non-violent methods. He staged many boycotts, protests and strikes to gain rights for migrant workers.

Because of Chavez, migrant workers gained the right to form unions and were united enough to fight for higher wages.

Not originally from California, Chavez began his life in Arizona, the second of six children. In the 1930s, when Chavez was still a child, the depression hit the United States. Chavez’s father lost his business, and after a severe drought a few years later, the family moved to California. After finishing the 8th grade, Chavez quit school and began doing farm work.

Chavez died in 1993, but his legacy undoubtedly lives on in California, and especially in the Central Valley.

His support for migrant farm workers not only helped students wanting a free day of school, but, more importantly, helped farm workers gain better wages. So when a school holiday comes along, try to keep in mind the cause behind it, not just the vacation.