After community pushback, Tarrant County commissioners are set to approve Cesar Chavez Day on the paid county holiday calendar during its meeting on Tuesday.
An agenda item previously proposed two options, one of which would have swapped Cesar Chavez Day with Veterans Day.
As of Monday afternoon, the updated agenda only included one option, which kept Cesar Chavez Day on the calendar.
The change comes after pushback from community activists who gathered in front of the Tarrant County Administration Building to protest the potential removal Monday morning.
Cesar Chavez Day has been recognized in Tarrant County since 2001. It celebrates American civil rights activist Cesar Chavez and his work as a Latino and farm labor leader.
And for a county with about a 30% Hispanic and Latino population, Tarrant County resident Richard Gonzales said the decision would have been a step back.
While the updated agenda appeared to keep Cesar Chavez Day on the holiday calendar, Gonzales said he and other community members still planned to show up to Tuesday's meeting.
"We are still going to meet at the commissioners meeting to verify it with our own eyes and ears that they, in fact, vote how they say they're going to vote and that is to have a new calendar for the fiscal year '25 that includes Cesar Chavez," he said.
Cesar Chavez Day is one of 13 paid holidays in which county buildings are closed.
The proposal to remove the holiday was first brought to community members' attention Aug. 10 during a breakfast organized by League of United Latin American Citizens, or LULAC. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported that Gabe Rivas, outreach director for Commissioner Alisa Simmons, told LULAC members that Commissioner Manny Ramirez was leading the charge to scrap the holiday.
Ramirez has denied his involvement.
Since Aug. 10, more than a thousand letters were sent to commissioners in opposition to removing the holiday, according to a letter by the Cesar Chavez Committee.
Community organizer Alexander Montalvo said they're encouraging community members to show up in support of the holiday during the meeting.
In a statement read by Montalvo, members of the Cesar Chavez Committee said the holiday was not just a day off — for some, it is a celebration of the life and legacy of an American who fought for workers' rights.
"We believe that any attempt to remove or demote this holiday would be an insult to the historical contribution of Latinos in this country and in Tarrant County," committee members said. "It would also be a slap in the face to every Latino who has worked hard to build a life for themselves and their families in Tarrant County."
County Judge Tim O'Hare did not immediately respond to a request for comment after the demonstration Monday.
Gonzales previously said the opposition to replacing Cesar Chavez Day was not meant to take away from recognizing veterans. Chavez was a veteran himself, serving two years in the Navy. The USNS Cesar Chavez, a U.S. Navy cargo ship, was named after him.
"I don't understand this black and white, you know, dichotomy in thinking that you have to have one or the other," Gonzales said. "You can have both by affirming a Cesar Chavez holiday."
Even if the holiday remains on the calendar, Gonzales said any vote in support of its removal would have sent a negative message to the Latino community in Tarrant County.
"It sends a message that they still don't see us as first-class citizens in this country, in this county," he said. "If they vote against it, they don't see us as equals."
This story has been updated to reflect revisions to the Tarrant County Commissioners Court agenda.
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