Cesar Chavez Washington DC Monument Proposal:
Cesar Chavez was born on March 31, 1927 as a first-generation citizen in Yuma, Arizona, US from latino-born parents. His parents owned a piece of farmland, but they lost it during the great depression. Not long after, after finishing middle school, Cesar was forced to labour in farms to help provide for his family. As the years passed by, he realized that not only were the conditions for farmers disgustingly ugly, but the payment they were receiving was close to nothing, and it kept all the workers well under the poverty line. During his twenties, he joined the US Navy and served in the West Pacific in the World War II aftermath. When he returned, he married his wife, Helen Fabela. Throughout
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Cesar chavez was a leader who gave a voice to the people who did not have one. Our monument will have a statue of Caesar standing above a pillar. He will look like he is shouting and he will be holding up poster of his black eagle on one hand. The black eagle is the symbol that is printed on the flag of the United Farm Workers (UFW). This organization was created from a merger of two organizations, one of them being created by Cesar Chavez. The pillar will contain a collection of photos of the marches he organized and attended, and it will be decorated with colourful mosaics of agricultural scenery that represent his homeland. At the first panel of the pillar, there will be his famous quote, “¡Sí se puede!” carved into the marble. The other three sides will be pictures. This will be the centerpiece of a garden, with circles of bushes with walkways. There will be bronze farmers in the garden, representing the people he helped. In terms of materials, our monument will need bronze for the statue of Cesar, along with the miniature statues of the farmers. We will need stone for the pillar, and mosaic tiles. For the garden we will need stone for the walkways and bushes for the bits of plant. We wanted to do this monument similar in size to the veterans memorial, which takes up 2 acres of space. The monument would end up costing …show more content…
After studying the map of Washington D.C, the best place to place the monument should be on the narrow strip of land off Independence Avenue SW, and a bit north-east of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial. This is a perfect place for it because of many reasons. First, it resembles the importance of how being a minority proved difficult for him and his family. Also, the close proximity to the Potomac River can remind people of the famous time when Cesar dropped boxes of farm-picked grapes into the ocean as a boycott. Overall, with this location and the way the monument will be built, Cesar Chavez and his accomplishments will now be rightfully recognized in Washington