Six Dallas city council members are requesting the city of Dallas remove references to Cesar Chavez from the city calendar following accusations of sexual abuse involving the United Farm Workers leader.
An investigation by The New York Times on Wednesday reported accusations that Chavez, who died in 1993, sexually abused women and girls, including American labor leader Dolores Huerta.
Huerta released a statement on the same day the investigation was published, revealing that she experienced two separate coerced sexual encounters with Chavez. She also revealed she had two children with him and arranged for them to be raised by other families to have stable lives.
Now Council Members Adam Bazaldua, Jesse Moreno, Jaime Resendez, Laura Cadena, Paula Blackmon, and Gay Donnell Willis are requesting references to Chavez be removed from the city's 2026 — and future — calendars.
A spokesperson for the city of Dallas said in a statement that City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert will work with the City Council on their decision to review the holiday.
"City staff will continue to monitor developments and support City Council members on whatever decision they make," the statement said.
The six council members also recommended in a memo issued late Wednesday that the city initiate a broader discussion to rename Cesar Chavez Boulevard.
The city approved naming Cesar Chavez Boulevard in 2010, renaming the stretch from Pacific Avenue, past the Farmers Market, to Grand Avenue. The push started two years prior when a council committee requested to rename Industrial Riverfront Boulevard.
At the time, committee members wanted a roadway named after Chavez to recognize the Dallas Hispanic community. Chavez brought his grape boycott to Dallas in 1990 to protest the use of pesticides, part of the fight for farmers' working conditions.
The sexual abuse allegations come less than two weeks from Cesar Chavez Day, on March 31.
Council Member Adam Bazaldua said in a statement on Wednesday that he will request a resolution to reconsider recognizing the holiday in Dallas.
"Without accountability and support, there can be no justice for any of us," Bazaldua said in the statement. "We must continue to foster a culture in which survivors feel seen, heard, and protected."
The response across Texas has been swift, with marches and events now cancelled. Gov. Greg Abbott announced the state would not observe the Cesar Chavez holiday.
"Reports of the horrific and widely acknowledged sexual assault allegations against Cesar Chavez rightfully dismantle the myth of this progressive hero and undermine the narrative that elevated Chavez as a figure worthy of official state celebration," Abbott said in the statement.
The cities of Austin and San Antonio are also looking into renaming their Cesar Chavez roadways.
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