After signing a bill into law today that creates Cesar Chavez Day in Michigan, Gov. Jennifer Granholm said “it takes courage” to stand up and say that people should not be discriminated against. Courage was a word she used earlier in the morning to describe Chavez, the well-known Hispanic labor rights leader.
The governor was at the Cristo Rey Community Center in Lansing this morning to sign SB 352, sponsored by Sen. Buzz Thomas (D-Detroit), a bill that establishes March 31 as Cesar Chavez Day. The bill does not create a state holiday. The bill encourages folks to remember Chavez for his fight for reasonable wages, decent housing and the outlawing of child labor.
“Cesar Chavez is not only a hero to the Hispanic community but to all people who labor and dream for peace, social justice, and dignity,” Thomas said. “This legislation is long overdue. Cesar E. Chavez’s legacy has touched us all, and this fitting recognition will continue to inform future generations of his accomplishments.”
To speed the bill’s passage through the Legislature, days remembering the great work of Ford Motor Company Henry Ford (July 30) and former President Gerald R. Ford (July 14) were added to the bill during its movement through the legislative process. Thomas said the addition of a day for the former president was somewhat of a coincidence in that his grandfather played football at the University of Michigan with Gerald R. Ford.
House Minority Leader Dianne Byrum (D-Onondaga), Rep. Michael Murphy (D-Lansing) and Sen. Valde Garcia (R-Howell) joined Thomas at the bill signing
Source: MIRS Capitol Capsule, Wed., December 3, 2003. Note: MIRS News is available to the MSU Community and other subscribers.