California Sen. Alex Padilla to rework national park bill honoring Cesar Chavez

Mathew Miranda, The Sacramento Bee on Mar 20, 2026

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SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California Sen. Alex Padilla has promised to rework legislation that proposed the creation of a multi-state national park honoring Cesar Chavez, the civil rights icon whose legacy has been tarnished after numerous allegations of sexual abuse surfaced earlier this week.

Padilla’s vow adds to the growing list of leaders, cities and communities who are cutting ties with the Chicano labor organizer following a New York Times story on Wednesday that detailed Chavez had sexually abused women and girls for years. Chavez, who was revered for decades for organizing farmworkers and highlighting their struggles, has been honored with his name on dozens of parks, schools, streets and events.

Many of those will likely be renamed in the coming weeks.

Padilla introduced his legislation to honor Chavez and the farmworker movement in March 2023 and again last year. The bill sought to preserve several sites associated with Chavez and his legacy in California and Arizona. These would have included an existing Chavez monument at the Santa Rita Center in Phoenix, Forty Acres in Delano and McDonnell Hall in San Jose.

Padilla, through spokesperson Edgar Rodríguez, said he will move to rename and rework the legislation in honor of farmworkers — “out of respect for the victims and as an initial step toward accountability.” Specifics on how the legislation will be changed are not yet clear.

The senator also supports removing Chavez’s name from landmarks, institutions and honors, Rodriguez added.

“The best way to honor the farmworker movement and the values that it represents, justice and dignity for all, is to not shy away from these very painful conversations that we’re having in real time across the country, but to also lean in to the true values of the movement and demand accountability whenever we hear of these instances of abuse,” Padilla told host Jake Tapper on CNN’s “The Lead” on Wednesday.

Among The Times’ findings are that Chavez repeatedly abused one woman for four years, starting when she was 13 and he was 45. Another woman said Chavez fondled her breasts when she was 12 and raped her in a hotel room when she was 15.

Dolores Huerta, who worked alongside Chavez for years and co-founded the United Farm Workers labor union, said he pressured her into two sexual encounters in 1960 and 1966. Huerta said she never told anyone about Chavez’s abuse, including her family, until a few weeks ago.

The findings have led to a swift and damning condemnation of Chavez across the country. In Sacramento, Mayor Kevin McCarty has appointed a subcommittee to guide renaming the downtown park named after Chavez in 1997. California lawmakers are pushing to change the name of the March 31 state holiday honoring Chavez’s birthday.