Want to build the second century of American conservation? Look to César Chávez.
*César Chavez’s son writes about his father as a guide for Latinos as the future of American conservation. It makes good sense for Latinos to take the lead of the environmental cause. VL
By Paul F. Chavez, High Country News (3 minute read)
Four years ago this October, President Barack Obama traveled to the very small town of Keene, California, in the foothills of the Tehachapi Mountains. This is the place where my father lived and labored during the last 25 years of his life. President Obama had come to dedicate the César E. Chávez National Monument, making it the National Park Service’s 398th unit and the first to honor a contemporary Latino figure. Just a few weeks before the anniversary of that event later this year, Americans will celebrate a monumental 100th birthday, the centennial of the National Park Service.
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These two milestones are worth applauding. Our national parks, in the words of Ken Burns in his PBS documentary, may well be “America’s best idea,” and celebrating them offers us the chance to reflect on this country’s leadership throughout the world in conservation. The Chávez National Monument also provides a glimpse into what the second century of American conservation could look like.
For generations to come, the Chávez National Monument recognizes my father’s legacy in building the United Farmworkers Union, which still works to remedy abuses of farmworkers. The monument shows visitors how he built a movement that confronted the exploitation and prejudice that farmworkers and other poor people have faced. The monument celebrates the boycotts, fasts, marches and protests that inspired millions of Latinos . . . READ MORE
Paul F. Chavez is a contributor to Writers on the Range, the opinion service of High Country News.He is president of the César Chávez Foundation, which partners with the National Park Service in managing the César E. Chávez National Monument in California.
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