This semester I attended a screening, discussion, and Q&A based on the documentary Hailing Cesar. The filmmaker of Hailing Cesar was the grandson of Cesar Chavez, Eduardo Chavez. The event itself was open to everyone, and students, faculty, and friends of the filmmaker were all present. Cesar Chavez was an extremely influential leader for labor rights for farmers, known primarily for the Delano grape strike and the co-founding of the National Farm Workers Association with Doroles Huerta. Eduardo is the grandson of two revolutionaries, Cesar Chavez on his dad’s side and Max Lesnik on his mom’s side. The event started with the screening of Hail Cesar, which detailed how Eduardo felt growing up as the grandson of Cesar Chavez but never feeling connected with him. Eduardo grew up very privileged, even getting a golf scholarship to Loyola University.
People know his grandfather, but he felt he didn’t know him at all. He made an effort to have conversations with his dad about Cesar Chavez that they had never had before. Eduardo felt that to go on this journey to understand his grandfather, he had to go to the fields and work. The documentary talked about these experiences he had. He spent a long time learning about this history, and the ties these restrictions had to racism and xenophobia. Because these Californian farmers were Latino or Asian, the government felt they didn’t have to treat these farmers with human dignity. Regardless of their citizenship status, across the board, people of color in this field of work were highly mistreated because those in authority felt they could get away with it.
The second part of the event was a conversation between Eduardo and the host. The host was the daughter of a man who also worked in the fields when she was growing up, so they were able to have a very in-depth discussion. The third and final part of the event was a question-and-answer portion. I brought up how, as a Chicana who learned Spanish very early in life, I have a very different ability to access my ancestry than my little brother, who never learned Spanish, does. Because of this, we have very different ways in which we engage with our cultural identity. I asked Eduardo if he and his siblings have different approaches to learning about where they came from and how they celebrate their heritage now. He mentioned how his little sister is much more confrontational than he is, so she had been having these conversations about Cesar Chavez with their father for much longer than Eduardo had.
Altogether, I was very pleased with the event. I am excited for any opportunity Latino-American students get to learn about our history, especially from unique perspectives.