March 19, 2026 10:16 AM UTC

Never Meet Your Heroes, And Always Have New Statues Ready

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• by: Colorado Pols

UPDATE: Rep. Diana DeGette of Denver calls for every Cesar Chavez monument to be renamed to honor women activists like Dolores Huerta:

“The accusations against César Chávez are shocking and disturbing. Legacy does not guarantee absolution, and I unequivocally condemn these abhorrent actions and stand with the survivors of his abuse. The UFW movement is larger than any one single person, and it will continue to advocate for and support farm workers and immigrants.

“For too long, the women who co-led these movements have been underrecognized for their actions. Denver and Colorado should immediately begin the process of renaming any street, park, building, landmark, or memorial named for César Chávez in favor of the women whose struggles helped define this movement, like Dolores Huerta.”

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Yesterday, the New York Times published an explosive story documenting a long shocking history of concealed sexual abuse that instantly tainted the legacy of civil rights icon Cesar Chavez, whose name appears on parks, schools, and monuments across the state of Colorado. As the Colorado Sun’s Michael Booth reports, the march and annual celebration in Denver next month celebrating Chavez’s life has been cancelled:

“The César Chávez Peace and Justice Committee of Denver has reviewed the allegations against César Chávez,” the statement said. “The committee unequivocally supports the abused women and children and their survivors. … The committee will plan a future event to continue honoring and celebrating the local unions and immigrant rights organizations who have participated in our past marches and celebrations. The committee continues to support their struggle towards liberation and social justice for all people.”

Colorado has a number of memorials to the civil rights leader’s 1970s activism.

The Times story quoted family members of Chávez saying they had no way to judge the allegations, but that they honored the experiences and voices of the women speaking up about the alleged abuse. Chávez marches and celebrations in other cities are also being canceled.

9NEWS reporter Jeremy Jojola Tweeted these images from the former Cesar E. Chavez Park:

After the civil rights protests in the summer of 2020, a number of statues were removed from downtown Denver featuring such now-controversial historical figures as Christopher Columbus and Kit Carson. There was significant opposition to the removal of those monuments, similar to the resistance to the removal of Confederate monuments across the South and other commemorations of historical figures whose bad behavior either personally or in public life offend modern sensibilities.

But we see today that even a revered icon of the civil rights movement, whose contributions to society are a matter of historical record, can do things that leave them personally unworthy of a heroic legacy. There is no better person to sort this out than Dolores Huerta herself:

The farmworker movement has always been bigger and far more important than any one individual. Cesar’s actions do not diminish the permanent improvements achieved for farmworkers with the help of thousands of people. We must continue to engage and support our community, which needs advocacy and activism now more than ever.

The moral of this sad story is that understanding history means being able to learn new lessons that reshape our understanding. We can’t always revere historical figures, or at least not the same way, after we learn the full truth. Accepting that, and being willing to take down the monuments, is what civic responsibility looks like.