California has officially replaced Cesar Chavez Day with Farmworkers Day, completing in just one week what may be the fastest legislative erasure of a civil rights icon in state history. [1]

Assembly Bill 2156, introduced by Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas and Senate President pro Tempore Monique Limón, cleared the legislature with bipartisan unanimity — 37-0 in the Senate — and received Governor Gavin Newsom's immediate signature. [2] The change took effect in time for the March 31 holiday, just days after a New York Times investigation alleged that Chavez sexually abused girls and women during his years leading the farmworker movement. Among his accusers: Dolores Huerta, who co-founded the United Farm Workers. [1]

The speed stunned Sacramento. "What a difference a year makes," said Republican Assemblyman Carl DeMaio, who accused lawmakers of having "airbrushed Cesar Chavez out" in a rushed job. [1]

Across the state, institutions have already begun the costly process of removing Chavez's name from plazas, libraries, and street signs. California State University, Fresno covered his campus statue. San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Sacramento have all taken steps to rename public landmarks. [2]

Limón framed the renamed holiday around collective dignity: "The farmworker movement is about the thousands of women and men whose hard work not only feeds our nation but creates lasting change." [1]

The curriculum question remains unresolved. State leaders are in talks with school officials to adjust lesson plans before August.

-- LUCIA VEGA, São Paulo