Opinion: As a fifth grader, I’m inspired by the work and accomplishments of Cesar Chavez
I still remember that in first grade I was creating flags and posters that said “¡Sí se puede!” to honor Chavez.
Godinez is a fifth-grade student at Cesar Chavez Elementary School in San Diego.
Celebrating Cesar Chavez is a very exciting and important moment for my school community to create precious memories and to honor him for his accomplishments that helped farmworkers to have equal rights and freedom.
The very first memory that I have of celebrating Chavez is when I was in first grade. I was 7 years old, so I don’t really remember much about it, but what I do remember was the march. The whole school marches around the neighborhood with flags and posters, along with police around to protect us. I still remember that in first grade I was creating flags and posters that said “¡Sí se puede!” to honor Chavez.
Cesar Chavez Day is a federal commemorative holiday held each March 31 to mark the birthday of the legendary labor activist.
We do this march every year to honor Chavez, but in second grade, on March 13, 2020, sadly it was canceled because of COVID-19. Because of the restriction orders, every student had to take online classes.
In fourth grade, everyone was encouraged to come to school and masks were optional. This meant that we finally could attend the Chavez march. What we did for the Chavez march was that we marched around the school field and yelled, “¡Sí se puede!”
I am now in in fifth grade. This year we were going to do the march when it was canceled due to the rain and cold temperatures. So to pass the time, we instead read Spanish and English books that taught us about Chavez’s accomplishments and the struggles that he faced but was able to persevere through. We also wrote essays about his values and how he is important in our lives.
To this day, we still continue to celebrate the Chavez march to honor all the hard work he did for the farmworkers to have justice and be treated fairly.
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