As a university with a rich agricultural and educational tradition, Cal Poly Pomona is proud to celebrate Cesar Chavez Day in a manner befitting the legacy of the educator, environmentalist and civil rights leader.
Cesar Chavez, the American activist and labor leader who co-founded the National Farm Workers Association, led peaceful strikes, marches and boycotts in order to promote better pay and working conditions for farm workers. In 2014, President Barack Obama declared Cesar Chavez day a U.S. federal commemorative holiday to be celebrated on March 31 every year.
Similar to last year, when the CPP Center for Community Engagement (CCE) celebrated digitally by promoting films and virtual tours of the Cesar E. Chavez Museum & National Monument, the CCE is hosting a multifaceted digital celebration honoring and remembering Cesar Chavez this year.
The celebration kicks off on the eve of the holiday, March 30, at 11 a.m. on the CCE Instagram (@cppce) with Trivia Tuesday, where the audience can answer questions about Cesar Chavez to win CCE swag. The CCE will also provide many opportunities to learn more about Cesar Chavez, including links to interactive websites and audio documentaries like the Farmworker Movement Documentation Project.
The CCE will direct visitors to movies including 1975 film ‘Fighting For Our Lives’ and 2014’s ‘Cesar Chavez Movie,’ to help students to #LearnByDoingGood and educate themselves about the icon.
“We should honor him for what he’s taught us about making America a stronger, more just, and more prosperous nation,” Obama said in 2008 in an effort to establish Cesar Chavez day as a holiday. “That’s why I support the call to make Cesar Chavez’s birthday a national holiday. It’s time to recognize the contributions of this American icon to the ongoing efforts to perfect our union.“