MADISON (WKOW) -- Cesar Chavez Elementary School will have a new name after Madison Metropolitan School District Board of Education voted unanimously to change it amid sexual abuse allegations against Chavez.
In a discussion that took just about five minutes, the board ended their meeting by approving the change to the school.
The school has been named after the labor and civil rights activist since 2001 and is now changing after the New York Times uncovered sexual abuse allegations against him.
Many organizations across the country are now removing his name from murals, schools and buildings.
MMSD Board of Education President Nichelle Nichols said during Monday night's meeting that it was an appropriate move for the school district to take.
"While we have two schools already in the process of forming their ad hoc committees, this one seems timely, critical and very much needed," Nichols said.
Theresa Delgadillo is the Director of Chicanx/e Latinx/e studies at UW-Madison and says the allegations have been difficult to process for the Latino community.
"Many of us individually feel for the women who have come forward to tell their stories, and also for Dolores Huerta," Delgadillo said.
Huerta worked closely with Chavez to form the United Farm Workers Union and was one of the women who claimed she was sexually assaulted and raped by him.
In light of the allegations, a painting of Chavez at UW-Madison has been covered that is part of a bigger mural on the walls of the CLS Academic Resource Center.
In statement regarding the mural, the school stated:
With the recent revelations, we are also re-examining the beautiful mural on the walls of the CLS Academic Resource Center, created by artist Malaquias Montoya and painted by CLS student artists Deborah Kuetzpal Vasquez and Katrina Brooks Flores in 2000.
That mural, which is a tribute to the farmworkers’ struggle, also embodies our collective effort to claim space and honor the struggles and histories of Chicanx peoples as well as their artistic expressions.
However, the mural includes a large image of César Chávez, which takes up about 1/3 of the wall. We are in the process of consulting with Montoya, as well as the campus art management policy and the Ad Hoc Campus Art Advisory Committee, to explore the future of this work, particularly in light of our planned office relocation in July.
Delgadillo says moving forward after the allegations is a reflection of growth in the labor movement.
"We shouldn't be afraid to re-examine our histories. We have to be courageous in doing that as well. And I think it represents that growth and that transformation, which is something to to be proud of. The Cesar Chavez family foundation itself has said that they support any organization or city or town or whatever that wants to rename," Delgadillo said.
The public will have until May 16 to submit names to rename the elementary school.
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