Former volunteer sues César Chavez nonprofits over failing to stop union leader from alleged sexual abuse

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One of the organizers who said she was sexually abused by Latino labor leader César Chavez decades ago has sued nonprofits tied to him.

The complaint filed last week in Southern California is the first legal action since the explosive allegations surrounding Chavez were first reported by the New York Times in March. The newspaper also first reported the complaint in Kern County Superior Court on Wednesday.

Filed on behalf of a Jane Doe, it names the César Chavez Foundation and the United Farm Workers Foundation as defendants. Both organizations are accused of failing to investigate complaints over the years about Chavez. They are being sued for several violations including negligent supervision, negligent infliction of emotional distress and sexual harassment. The woman was moved to go to civil court after learning more about the scope of Chavez’s alleged abuse of girls and women, including labor figure Dolores Huerta .

The Associated Press does not name victims or survivors of sexual assault and abuse unless they come forward publicly.

“This has been a long time coming for her to take this step,” V. James DeSimone, one of the attorneys representing her pro bono, told the AP. “She’s committed to the process and is grateful she can legally do something about this all these years later. She suffered a lot over the years. It continues to cause her stress and anxiety.”

DeSimone says he expects to hear from other abuse survivors.

The woman, now in her 80s, first met Chavez when she moved to California’s Central Valley after graduating college, according to the suit. Inspired by a previous summer volunteering there, she wanted to join in organizing farm workers. In 1973, she and her family were among several workers who moved into the compound in Keene that was the offices of the organization now known as the United Farm Workers .

She says Chavez tried to ply her with alcohol and dance with her at a party that year. He later followed her to her home and raped her in a bedroom. A few years later, she said Chavez assaulted her again.

The woman believes the United Farm Workers Foundation and the César Chavez Foundation in previous years “made concerted efforts to hide evidence of sexual harassment and sexual assaults of girls and women by UFW members and leaders, including César Chavez.” Women in the movement were “verbally attacked” by Chavez’s top lieutenants and accused of trying to ruin the movement if they spoke up about him or their safety, according to the suit.

She is asking for a jury trial and damages including for past and future earnings as well as punitive damages.

The César Chavez Foundation, in a statement, said it only recently became aware of the complaint. “We are reviewing with our legal counsel and will respond in a way that stays true to our mission and values.”

When claims about Chavez’s behavior first came to light, the foundation called them shocking and painful. The organization also vowed to stand by the victims and achieve “restorative justice.”

“To the survivors: we believe you. We honor your courage, and we are very sorry for the harm you have carried in the shadows for so long,” the foundation said back in March.

The UFW Foundation did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment. The United Farm Workers union, which is not named in the complaint and operates separately, declined to comment.

Chavez continued to be the face of workers’ rights until his death in 1993. In the wake of the sexual abuse revelations, Chavez’s storied legacy was dismantled practically overnight. César Chavez Day celebrations planned around his March 31 birthday were immediately canceled or postponed. State and local governments began to rename schools, streets and other places that honored him.

DeSimone, a workers’ rights attorney who once admired Chavez, said they are not looking to stop these nonprofits from carrying out their missions. But, they said, survivors are owed accountability and a sense of closure.

No matter how noble, “no cause, no organization, should be above the law,” DeSimone said. “Sexual abuse and assault are not the price you should have to pay for it.”

Les Lee/Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

一位声称几十年前曾遭拉丁裔劳工领袖塞萨尔·查韦斯性侵的组织者，已对与他有关联的非营利组织提起诉讼。

上周在南加州提起的诉讼是自《纽约时报》3月份首次报道有关查韦斯的爆炸性指控以来的首起法律诉讼。该报还于周三率先报道了在克恩县高等法院提起的诉讼。

这起诉讼以一位化名简·多伊的女士的名义提起，被告包括塞萨尔·查韦斯基金会和联合农场工人基金会。这两个组织被指控多年来未能调查针对查韦斯的投诉。他们被控犯有多项罪行，包括疏忽监管、疏忽造成精神痛苦和性骚扰。这位女士在了解到更多关于查韦斯涉嫌虐待女孩和妇女（包括劳工领袖多洛雷斯·韦尔塔）的案件后，决定提起民事诉讼。

除非受害者或性虐待幸存者主动公开露面，否则美联社不会公布他们的姓名。

“她终于迈出这一步，可谓是期盼已久，”代表她提供免费法律援助的律师之一V·詹姆斯·德西蒙告诉美联社。“她积极配合整个流程，并感激多年后终于能够通过法律途径解决这个问题。这些年来她饱受折磨，这件事至今仍给她带来压力和焦虑。”

德西蒙表示，他希望能够收到其他虐待幸存者的来信。

据诉讼文件显示，这位现年八十多岁的老妇大学毕业后搬到加州中央谷地，在那里第一次见到了查韦斯。此前一个夏天，她曾在那里做过志愿者，这段经历激励她加入到组织农场工人的行列中。1973年，她和家人与其他几位工人一起搬进了位于基恩市的办公楼，那里是如今被称为“联合农场工人”的组织的办公地点。

她说，那年在一次聚会上，查韦斯试图给她灌酒并邀请她跳舞。之后，他跟踪她到她家，并在卧室里强奸了她。几年后，她说查韦斯再次袭击了她。

该女子认为，联合农场工人基金会和塞萨尔·查韦斯基金会在过去几年中“曾合谋掩盖联合农场工人基金会成员和领导人（包括塞萨尔·查韦斯）对女孩和妇女进行性骚扰和性侵犯的证据”。诉讼称，运动中的女性遭到查韦斯高级助手的“言语攻击”，并被指责如果她们公开谈论查韦斯或自身安全问题，就是试图破坏这场运动。

她要求陪审团审判，并要求赔偿损失，包括过去和未来的收入损失以及惩罚性赔偿。

塞萨尔·查韦斯基金会在一份声明中表示，他们最近才得知此事。“我们正在与法律顾问进行审查，并将以符合我们使命和价值观的方式作出回应。”

当有关查韦斯行为的指控首次曝光时，该基金会称这些指控令人震惊和痛心。该组织还誓言要与受害者站在一起，实现“修复性司法”。

“致幸存者们：我们相信你们。我们敬佩你们的勇气，并对你们长期以来在阴影中承受的伤害深感抱歉，”该基金会在三月份表示。

美国联合农场工人基金会（UFW Foundation）尚未回复记者的置评请求邮件。未在投诉中被提及且独立运作的联合农场工人工会（United Farm Workers union）拒绝置评。

查韦斯生前一直是工人权益的象征，直至1993年去世。然而，随着性侵丑闻的曝光，查韦斯辉煌的声誉几乎在一夜之间被摧毁。原定于3月31日他生日前后举行的塞萨尔·查韦斯日庆祝活动立即被取消或推迟。州政府和地方政府开始重新命名学校、街道和其他以他名字命名的场所。

曾一度钦佩查韦斯的劳工权益律师德西蒙表示，他们并非要阻止这些非营利组织开展工作。但他们也指出，幸存者理应得到公正的对待和最终的慰藉。

德西蒙说，无论多么崇高的事业，“任何事业、任何组织都不能凌驾于法律之上”。“性虐待和性侵犯不应该是你为此付出的代价。”