When I ask my students who comes to mind when they think about immigrants’ rights, they inevitably bring up Cesar Chavez. After all, he founded the United Farm Workers union, a central force behind the farmworker movement of the 1960s and 70s in central California. The union proudly claims to be led by “longtime champions of immigration reform.”
This vague phrasing highlights the UFW’s complex historical relationship with undocumented workers. While today the union represents all farm laborers regardless of immigration status — and lobbies for comprehensive immigration reform — its legacy on the matter is painful and complicated.
In fact, for a time, Chavez and his union led a brutal and violent campaign against the undocumented. And while Chavez is an admirable figure in many ways, if we want to deepen the fight for the rights of undocumented immigrants, I tell my students to look to the legacy of Humberto “Bert” Corona instead, the man largely responsible for shifting the UFW’s stance.
