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Summary IB History Paper 3 Civil Rights and Social Movements Essay Plans
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To what extent did Cesar Chavez advance the civil rights of Hispanic Americans in the UnitedStates after 1945?
Cesar Chavez advanced civil rights of Hispanic Americans in the US to some extent. Chavez employed nonviolent
means to bring attention to the plight of farmworkers and formed both the National Farm Workers Association,
which later became United Farm Workers. As a labor leader, Chavez led marches, called for boycotts, and went on
several hunger strikes. Hence, he was very influential in the agricultural movement but not in other areas such as
education and political representation.
Through marches, strikes, and boycotts, Chavez forced employers to pay adequate wages and provide other
benefits. In 1966, the National Farm Workers Association (NFWA), founded by Chavez, joined a strike for higher pay
and better working conditions in the grape fields, started by Filipino farmworkers belonging to the Agricultural
Workers Organizing Committee (AWOC). However, Chavez felt more action was needed and therefore decided to
start a 300-mile march in March 1966 to Sacramento, California. The scheduled march received the desired
attention, including that of Senator Robert Kennedy. Additionally, a grower, Schenley, in the face of bad publicity and
pressure from politicians and union figures including Walter Reuther, began negotiations with the farm workers. A
labor contract between the NFWA and Schenley resulted, but labor difficulties in the fields continued with other
growers.
In mid-1966, Cesar Chavez’s NFWA merged the AWOC to form the United Farm Workers (UFW). The UFW organized
a national boycott of table grapes, supported at its peak by 17 million Americans, demanding higher wages and
better working conditions for farmworkers. In 1970, the growers finally agreed to sign union contracts. More strikes
and boycotts followed, such as the Lettuce boycott, as UFW membership reached 70,000 by 1972 and gained
significant national attention. However, the triumph was somewhat short lived. Although the UFW contributed to
the passage of exceptionally worker-friendly legislation in California designed to protect agricultural unions (the
Agricultural Labour Relations Act of 1975), grower opposition, mechanization, and rising immigration so weakened
UFW that, by the late 1980s, its members harvested only 10 per cent of Californian grapes. Furthermore, as the
years passed, many of the gains evaporated as contracts expired. While this shows that Chavez contribution to
legislation and sustained success was limited, historian F. Rosales points out “ the degree to which the farmworker
movement succeeded is not the most important measurement of Chavez’s place in history. He is a heroic symbol of
Mexican-American civil rights struggles whom Mexican-Americans can identify.” Indeed, Chavez remained a highly
influential figure though his success in advancing Hispanic civil rights was limited.
Chavez gave ethnic Mexican workers their first positive and successful US role model and, although his union’s
achievements for its workers were limited, it helped galvanize Mexican-Americans and Mexican immigrants into
activism. For example, when many Mexican-Americans, including college students, did voluntary work in the UFW
campaign, it served as a crucial training ground for a new generation of Mexican-American political leaders.
Furthermore, out of over 200 contemporary Mexican-American organizations, it was only Chavez’s UFW that gained
significant national attention. Historian Randy Shaw emphasized how Chavez and the UFW left an inspirational
legacy for many social movements regarding labor, immigrant rights, and safety. Indeed, Chavez and the UFW played
an important part in stimulating a Chicano civil rights movement that inspired Mexican-Americans throughout the
Southwest to a greater ethnic pride and purposefulness focused upon voting, electing Latinos to office, and protests
against supposed cultural inferiority. That in turn led local and national government to pay greater attention the
Mexican-American needs. Additionally, the increased Hispanic pride led to the founding of La Raza Unida Party
(LRUP) in 1970 which was the first Hispanic–American political organization.
In conclusion, Cesar Chavez advanced civil rights of Hispanic Americans in the US after 1945 to some extent. Through
marches strikes and boycotts initiated by Chavez and the UFW, Labor contracts and other forms of worker-friendly
legislation were signed to support Hispanic American farm workers, though, their success was very limited and
therefore didn’t lead to a substantial advance in civil rights. However, Chavez gave people a sense of their own
power and motivated them to fight for their civil rights. Farmworkers discovered they could demand dignity and
better wages. Volunteers learned tactics later put to use in other social movements such as the Chicano Movement.
, Evaluate the contributions of Cesar Chavez to the Hispanic American movement.
Chavez employed nonviolent means to bring attention to the plight of farmworkers and formed both the National
Farm Workers Association, which later became United Farm Workers. As a labor leader, Chavez led marches, called
for boycotts, and went on several hunger strikes.
Through marches, strikes, and boycotts, Chavez forced employers to pay adequate wages and provide other
benefits. In 1966, the National Farm Workers Association (NFWA), founded by Chavez, joined a strike for higher pay
and better working conditions in the grape fields, started by Filipino farmworkers belonging to the Agricultural
Workers Organizing Committee (AWOC). However, Chavez felt more action was needed and therefore decided to
start a 300-mile march in March 1966 to Sacramento, California. The scheduled march received the desired
attention, including that of Senator Robert Kennedy. Additionally, A grower, Schenley, in the face of bad publicity
and pressure from politicians and union figures including Walter Reuther, began negotiations with the farm workers.
A labor contract between the NFWA and Schenley resulted, but labor difficulties in the fields continued with other
growers.
In mid-1966, the NFWA and the AWOC merged into the United Farm Workers (UFW). The UFW organized a national
boycott of table grapes, supported at its peak by 17 million Americans. In 1970, the growers finally agreed to sign
union contracts. More strikes and boycotts followed, such as the Lettuce boycott, as UFW membership reached
70,000 by 1972 and gained significant national attention. However, the triumph was somewhat short lived. Although
the UFW contributed to the passage of exceptionally worker-friendly legislation in California designed to protect
agricultural unions (the Agricultural Labor Relations Act of 1975), grower opposition, mechanization, and rising
immigration so weakened UFW that, by the late 1980s, its members harvested only 10 per cent of Californian grapes.
Furthermore, as the years passed, many of the gains evaporated as contracts expired. While this shows that Chavez
contribution to legislation and sustained success was limited, historian F. Rosales points out “ the degree to which
the farmworker movement succeeded is not the most important measurement of Chavez’s place in history. He is a
heroic symbol of Mexican-American civil rights struggles whom Mexican-Americans can identify.” Indeed, Chavez
remained a highly influential figure.
Since it was the first time in their long history ethnic Mexicans had a positive, successful national role model to look
up to, Chavez and the UFW also played an important part in stimulating a Chicano civil rights movement. Randy
Shaw emphasized how Chavez and the UFW left an inspirational legacy for many social movements regarding labor,
immigrant rights, and safety. The increased Hispanic pride led to the founding of La Raza Unida Party (LRUP) in 1970
which was the first Hispanic–American political organization.
Chavez gave Mexican workers their first positive and successful US role model, and although his unions
achievements for its workers were limited, it helped motivate Mexican-Americans and Mexican immigrants into
activism. In his most enduring legacy, Chavez gave people a sense of their own power. Farmworkers discovered they
could demand dignity and better wages. Volunteers learned tactics later put to use in other social movements.
People who refused to buy grapes realized that even the smallest gesture could help force historic change.
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