UC Berkeley Drops Cesar Chavez's Name From Student Center

BERKELEY, CA — UC Berkeley's Student Center will no longer bear Cesar Chavez's name in the aftermath of sexual abuse allegations against the late labor leader.

UC Berkeley officials confirmed to Patch that crews removed the name Thursday morning.

The building will only be called the Student Center until it goes through UC Berkeley's renaming process.

University officials say Chancellor Rich Lyons and Provost Benjamin Hermalin began a review of the student center's name soon after a New York Times investigation revealed that Chavez allegedly sexually assaulted female followers as young as 12 in the 1970s.

The report also alleged that Chavez raped United Farm Workers co-founder Dolores Huerta, now 95, in 1966.

"When these allegations came to light, we moved quickly to do the right thing," Lyons said in a statement. "The committee’s review was thorough, the community’s voice was overwhelming and the conclusion was clear. That so many students, faculty and staff engaged in this process exemplifies UC Berkeley at its very best."

Faculty from UC Berkeley's Chicanx Latinx Studies Program, the Social Sciences Division, and the School of Education also penned a letter voicing support for the removal of Chavez's name from the Student Center.

"The allegations of sexual assault, including the assault of children, are deeply disturbing and are corroborated by multiple forms of evidence, including the testimony of his victims," the letter reads. "We call on campus leadership to act immediately and decisively to remove his name
from a building that Cal undergraduates use every day."

UC Berkeley is just the latest to detach itself from Chavez. Soon after the report, California moved to rename Cesar Chavez Day to Farmworkers Day.

The city of Berkeley is also in the process of renaming Cesar Chavez Park.