César Chávez Estrada (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈsesar ˈtʃaβez]; March 31, 1927 â€“ April 23, 1993) was a Mexican American farm worker, labor leader, and civil rights activist who, with Dolores Huerta, co-founded the National Farm Workers Association, which later became the United Farm Workers (UFW).^[1]

He became the best known Latino civil rights activist and as, founder of the United Farm Workers (UFW) was strongly promoted by the labor movement eager to enroll Hispanic members . His public-relations approach to unionism and aggressive but nonviolent tactics made the farm workers' struggle a moral cause with nationwide support. By the late 1970s, his tactics had forced growers to recognize the UFW as the bargaining agent for 50,000 field workers in California and Florida. However by the mid-1980s membership in the UFW had dwindled to around 15,000.

(... from Wikipedia on 2010-07-30 12:57:58 )