UC Davis César Chávez youth conference renamed following sexual assault

Mrak Hall, the main administrative building at UC Davis. The school has renamed their César Chávez youth conference after sexual assault allegations became known to the public. (Christian Cendejas / Aggie)

The previously named César Chávez Leadership Conference is now the Avanza Rising Scholars Conference

UC Davis has renamed a youth conference, formerly bearing the name of now disgraced labor leader César Chávez, following detailed allegations of his sexual abuse against several women and minors.

The former César Chávez Leadership Conference is now named the Avanza Rising Scholars Conference. It takes the name of UC Davis’ existing Avanza Initiative, which focuses on expanding the university’s services and support structures relating to its status as a Hispanic Serving Institution.

An investigation by The New York Times, published March 18, detailed multiple allegations of sexual abuse by Chávez against two women when they were minors — Ana Murguia and Debra Rojas — as well as sexual assault against fellow activist Dolores Huerta.

Chávez, who died in 1993, was best known as a figurehead of both the Latino civil rights movement and the farmworker rights movement. UC Davis joins several other universities — in California and across the country — in renaming and removing Chávez’s name and likeness from programming, murals, statues and other honorifics.

UC Berkeley removed a bust and portrait of Chávez shortly after the accusations were publicized, noting that it will review other mentions of him across its campus. UC Los Angeles’ (UCLA) Department of Chicana/o Studies also held a vote to remove Chávez’s name from the department’s title, though official renaming authority lies with UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk and University of California (UC) President James B. Milliken.

UC Davis’ campus leadership was consulted on March 17, before the publication of the Times’ piece but after acknowledgements of the accusations by the United Farmworkers of America Foundation and the César Chávez Foundation, according to UC Davis Director of News and Media Relations James Nash.

“We remain committed to offering leadership opportunities and mentorship to youth and families through the conference and other programming,” Nash said.

As of the time of publication, Nash said that the university has not found any other programs, buildings or events that bear Chávez’s name.

The Avanza Rising Scholars Conference is an annual free college and career event for junior high, high school and community college students hosted by UC Davis’ Inclusive Excellence division. Programming includes workshops on college admissions, financial aid and other higher education presentations. It focuses on supporting students from historically underrepresented backgrounds, and is scheduled for May 16.

“Our hearts are with the victims, their families and all those who have found inspiration in [Chávez’s] leadership for justice and equity for farmworker rights and are now grappling with this news,” a press statement from Inclusive Excellence’s website reads. “We unequivocally condemn all acts of abuse and violence. At the same time, we remain firmly committed to advancing equitable access to higher education for all members of our community.”

UC Davis’ Department of Chicana/o/x Studies, in a separate statement, expressed solidarity with the survivors of Chávez’s abuse.

“We move to challenge and transform the continuum of heteropatriarchial violence, for the most egregious sexual violence rests on the daily sometimes covert ways that Chicana/x lives are undermined, belittled, and marginalized,” the statement reads. “We commit to assessing and uprooting patriarchal violence in our classrooms, in our pedagogies, and in our collegial relations.”

Written by: Lily Kenrow — campus@theaggie.org