Response to "Cesar Chavez Saved My Life," by Daniel Alejandrez

The article "Cesar Chavez Saved My Life," is one that threw me for a curveball. Many different ideas are produced throughout the article. Some ideas are tied so deep into the article, that I had to read certain sections twice to understand the connection the author was trying to make. The article reflects on the author's life, and doesn't fail to cover any bases. It discusses how hearing a man prach about his beliefs helped shape his own. It also jumps to some conclusions about the Mexican race, but ends on a good note in which everyone had a selfless moment that failed to recognize race.

Mr. Alejandrez was just an average Mexican fieldworker who had to travel to find work. His family had done the same before he did. One day, he realized that he was being paid over four times less than the men who just sat on a machine all day (he was working by hand). He hadn't noticed that he was even being treated unfairly until a radio broadcast came on one day. Cesar Chavez was on the radio telling his ideas about seeking justice. This struck a chord with Alejandrez, and he and the workers went on strike. The employers agreed to raise their wages a little, but that wasn't the point.

After this, the article skips around to when he organized dances that unified people at prison. It ends talking about an instance where gang members of opposing gangs held hands and dances unified. He mentioned that the world was happy for one moment, and that these people put aside their differences for those few minutes of bliss.

I think Mr. Chavez's radiocast was fortunate to be on at the time it was. It influenced Mr. Alejandrez to want to help all people, for the good of mankind. Mr. Alejandrez talked about how so many of his people (Mexicans) had wound up in jail, much like he did. I believe what he meant by this article is that if you unite everyone, differences will fail to be recognized by society, and no one group can be classified by its race. To Mr. Chavez, we all owe a little thanks. He stood up for justice, and each and every one of us can too (much like Alejandrez did).