Rep. Zoe Lofgren Spearheads Congressional Call to Designate Cesar Chavez Site a National Historic Landmark
Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose), the Chair of the California Congressional Delegation (CDCD), is spearheading an effort with 26 of her colleagues in the delegation to designate McDonnell Hall in San Jose, Calif., as a National Historic Landmark because of the significant role it played in the life of civil rights leader Cesar Chavez. In a letter to Sally Jewell, Secretary of the Department of the Interior, the lawmakers say McDonnell Hall, previously used as the Chapel of Our Lady of Guadalupe, should be preserved as 'a significant historical resource that will benefit future generations.' They urged Secretary Jewell to give the request to preserve the landmark her full consideration.
"This simple chapel nurtured one of our greatest civil rights champions and a movement that changed the rights of immigrants throughout our nation," Rep. Zoe Lofgren said. "Even as we debate immigration today, we should not lose the few sites that remain from Chavez's life‹we should preserve them and celebrate their history."
Chavez, who lived in East San Jose's Sal Si Puedes neighborhood, co-founded the National Farm Worker's Association, becoming a renowned civil rights activist who led the movement to improve labor conditions for farm workers. It was at the former chapel where Chavez was introduced through his Catholic faith to the ideas of nonviolence, self sacrifice, and social justice by Father Donald McDonnell, for whom the building is named. The lawmakers credited this, saying it 'laid the foundation for his work' that made Chavez 'one of the most prominent civil rights leaders of the twentieth century.'
In addition to Rep. Lofgren, it was signed by the following Members of Congress (in alphabetical order): Xavier Becerra, Julia Brownley, Lois Capps, Tony Cardenas, Judy Chu, Jim Costa, Susan Davis, Anna G. Eshoo, Sam Farr, John Garamendi, Janice Hahn, Mike Honda, Jared Huffman, Barbara Lee, Alan Lowenthal, George Miller, Grace Napolitano, Scott Peters, Lucille Roybal-Allard, Raul Ruiz, Brad Sherman, Eric Swalwell, Mike Thompson, Juan Vargas, and Henry Waxman.
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