© Glen S. Jimenez 2011
Education Programs
Chavez: Rise of a Leader
Written by Glen S. Jimenez
About the play: Told through the eyes of a child, this story takes place along California Highway 99, at
a produce stand among the vast farms where migrant farm worker till the soil and harvest the daily crops.
When a son asks his dad for another bag of grapes, he takes the opportunity to tell him the story of Cesar
Chavez and the importance of the value of a man. Includes a Q/ (One Act Play - Run Time: 30 min)
About Cesar Chavez: United States organizer and leader of migrant farm workers. Born into a family of
Mexican-American migrant laborers, he spent his early years in a succession of migrant camps, attending
school only sporadically. After two years in the Navy, he returned to migrant farm work. He began organizing
the largely Hispanic farm workers of Arizona and California in 1962. A charismatic figure, he used strikes and
nationwide boycotts to win union recognition and contracts from California grape and lettuce growers. He
brought his union into the AFL-CIO, and in 1971 it became the United Farm Workers of America (UFW). He
successfully battled the Teamsters Union for the right to organize field hands in the 1970s, but in later years
his leadership faltered and the UFW declined. “Si Se Puede” – Yes We Can!
"One of the heroic figures of our time." --- Senator Robert F. Kennedy
Recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom & the Aguila Azteca
Contact us if you would like this performed at your school or event.
info@kaleidoscopetheater.org or call (310) 383-6912