A student-led petition at César E. Chavez High School is sparking discussion about whether the school should be renamed. This follows recent questions regarding Chavez’s legacy and the meaning of the name today.
“I was like wow, like I go to this school and Im representing this guy. i was gonna tell my mom that I would rather move to a different school because I don’t want to show my respects for this guy,” said Cesar Chavez High School student Isabel Hilaro.
Ninth grader Isabel Hilaro says she was stunned when she first heard the news.
Determined to be part of the movement for change, she’s now one of hundreds who’ve added their names to a growing petition.
“This hit really close to home, especially to our students who attend Cesar Chavez high school and we were talking that morning he was in shock just like his friends were and he said hey we need to change the school name,” said Executive director of Loud for Romorrow Jose Orellana.
Orellana says It was his brother who decided to make the petition, which is in partnership with the non profit.
Throughout the day, 23ABC spoke with students and parents, sharing their opinion on the matter
“I think having our schools name linked to such a controversial person could probably bring bad publicity to the school,” said student Matthew Boney.”
“My first initial thoughts were I was very appalled because he’s somebody that the community looked up to. We all know the name, he’s all over the United States,” said parent Valerie Ramirez.
But when trying to speak with the organizers, Orellana tells me, they don’t want to.
“They’re really scared of retaliation from the school from school administration, most of them are seniors,” said Orellana. “You know most of them are seniors, they don’t want to lose their diploma and their chance to walk graduation because of this petition.”
We weren’t able to secure an interview with the school district, but they did release a statement earlier that reads in part quote, “As a school district with a school bearing his name, we recognize the heightened concern within our
campus community and the broader public. In light of the seriousness of the allegations, the District will be initiating a formal review of the name of César Chávez High School.”
Stay in Touch with Us Anytime, Anywhere:
