Lesson Title:  
César Chávez, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Civil Rights

Grade Level: 
Grade Four Lesson 5

History-Social Science Standard:
4.4   Students explain how California became an agricultural and industrial power, tracing the transformation of the California economy and its political and cultural development since the 1850s.

Correlation to K-8 California Adopted Textbooks:
Harcourt Brace: California.  Unit 4: A Changing State.  Chapters 7 and 8.  Unit 5: Modern California. Chapter 9.
 
McGraw-Hill: California.  Unit 4: California, The U.S. and the World.  Chapters 9 and 10

Setting the Context:
In the 1950s and 1960s, the California economy was booming and many people came to California in order to find a better life.  Not all of the people who arrived were allowed to participate in the thriving economy because of discrimination.

In the 1950s, Martin Luther King, Jr. led a civil rights movement in the United States.  The movement fought to acquire civil rights for the African Americans in the South, but millions of Americans joined the civil rights movement in an effort to stop discrimination.  In the early 1950s César E. Chávez joined Fred Ross and the Community Service Organization to teach people how to solve their problems by organizing fellow citizens for social and economic justice.  In 1962, Chávez organized the Farm Workers Association, in California and created a movement that became part of the civil rights movement.

Focus Question:
What are civil rights and how did César Chávez and Martin Luther King, Jr., Ph.D., work to better the lives of people who suffered because of discrimination and social and economic injustice?
 
Expected Learning Outcomes:
The students will be able to define civil rights and compare César E. Chávez and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in their values, efforts, and accomplishments.

Assessment:
The students will write a three to four paragraph paper that defines civil rights, compares the similarities and differences of César E. Chávez and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and judge what changes were brought about by these two men.

Key Concepts:
Conflict
Change
Ethnic Diversity
Social Justice
Economic Justice

Essential Vocabulary:
economy: the way a state or country uses its natural resources to meet their needs
discrimination: the unfair treatment of people because of such things as color of skin, race, religion, or birthplace.
civil rights: the fair and equal treatment promised by law to citizens of a country
movement: a way of thinking and acting taken up by many people with the hopes of bringing about a change
Supreme Court: the highest court in the state or federal judicial system
agriculture: the science and business of growing crops and raising livestock
aviation: the production and flying of aircraft
booming economy:  an economy that is making a lot of money
industry: the making or selling of a good or a service
manufacture:  the process of turning raw materials into a final product
nonviolent: to act without violence
fair wages:  payment that is fair for work that was done
safe working conditions: a work place that is free from danger
unsafe working conditions: a dangerous work place  
boycott: to stop buying or using a product as a form of protest

Primary Sources:
Photo of César E. Chávez and Coretta Scott King
Photo of César E. Chávez
Picture of Martin Luther King
Telegram from Martin Luther King, Jr. to César E. Chávez
Copy of an except from the speech by César E. Chávez “Lessons of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.”
Picture of someone using “el cortito”

Visuals:
Use a map of the United States of America on which to locate California and the South.

Procedure

Motivation:
Tell the students that many people have contributed to the growth and development of California and the United States.  Explain that change for the better cannot always be easily seen.  Tell them today they will learn about two men that both are responsible for changing the lives of millions of people in California, the United States of America, and, in fact, the world.

Making Connections:
Review the following synopsis with the students in order to help them put into perspective opportunities that existed for most people in California during the 1950s and 1960s. 

The California Economy Booms 1950s - 1960s
Before WWII, California’s economy centered mainly around agriculture and to some extent, on movie making, aviation, and shipbuilding.  Although these industries continued to grow after WWII, many new kinds of industries were born.  Because of the great number of new factories providing jobs for people, the California economy boomed in the 1950s.  California became a diverse economy because of the many new industries that manufactured chemicals, clothing, cosmetics, electronic equipment, automobiles, jet airplanes, and airplane engines.  

In 1959, scientists in California invented the silicon chip, and the silicon chip was used to help make computers smaller.  The computer industry grew, and computers and silicon chips helped many other industries grow.

In the 1960s, the aerospace industry also grew in California and began to build rockets and the space ships necessary for space exploration.  Scientists came to work at the laboratories and the factories employed many people.  The opportunities for jobs in California were excellent and many people came to work in the new industries.  However, not all people that lived in California had an opportunity to work at the new factories because of discrimination.  They were denied equal treatment and were kept out of high paying jobs, and often they could not live where they wanted.

In the 1950s, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. led a nonviolent civil rights movement in the South.  In 1962, César E. Chávez led a nonviolent movement in California that worked to better the lives of people in demanding civil rights and social and economic justice.  Together, their efforts changed California and America in ways that resulted in extending dignity and respect to minorities, workers, the impoverished, and the dispossessed.

Vocabulary Activities: 
Give the students a list of the vocabulary word and go over their meanings together.  They will need direct teacher guidance in order to grasp the meanings of these vocabulary words.

Guided Instruction:
Share the following definition of civil rights:

The Constitution of the United States of America guarantees all Americans the following civil rights:  Freedom of speech, of the press, religion, right to own property, and to receive fair and equal treatment from government, other persons, or private groups.  

Tell the students that before WWII California’s economy had centered on agriculture, oil, movie making, aviation, and shipbuilding, but in the 1950s, California’s economy boomed.  The economic boom was because many new industries and factories were built during and after the war.  Although many people worked in the new industries, there were people who were not allowed to work.  They were discriminated against because of their race.

Read the following synopsis with the students on farm workers, César E. Chávez, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement.   

César E. Chávez and the farm workers 
In the 1960s, there were many opportunities in the cities of California.  Workers were paid a minimum of $1.25 an hour, but farm workers made only $0.90 an hour.  Even though California’s agribusiness was the largest and richest in the United States and one of the richest industries of California, it paid the farm workers very little and they lived in poverty.  Farm workers worked and lived in very bad conditions because the growers did not want to spend money on the farm workers.  The working conditions were unsafe for the farm workers because dangerous pesticides were sprayed on the farm workers and they were not given fresh water or bathrooms.  Many farm workers lived in run down and poorly constructed shacks rented to them by the growers in the labor camps.

The farm workers tried to solve these problems, but were not allowed to organize or vote to form a union that could help them demand fair wages, safer working conditions, and better housing.  California’s farm labor force was diverse, but most of the farm workers were Latinos.  César E. Chávez wanted to better the lives of the farm workers.  He knew that their civil rights were being violated because they were forced to work for very low pay, in unsafe working conditions, and were not allowed to organize a union that would help them.  Other workers in California were guaranteed fair wages, safe working conditions, and had the right to form a union.  Civil rights are citizen’s rights to equal treatment and are guaranteed in the Constitution of the United States. 

César worked from 1962 until the day he died in 1993 to improve the lives of farm workers.  He organized and built a union that had great political strength because of the millions of Americans that supported him in his efforts to acquire justice and civil rights for farm workers.  The United Farm Workers (UFW), after five years of boycotting and picketing, succeeded in organizing the State of California and getting growers to recognize them and their demands.  César E. Chávez and the UFW became part of the movement that was fighting for civil rights.

Because of César E. Chávez’s efforts, some of State laws of California were changed.  In 1974, Richard Alatorre introduced a farm labor bill with the backing of César E. Chávez and the UFW and in 1975, The California Agricultural Labor Relations Act gave farm workers secret ballot elections to unionize, the right to boycott, and voting rights for seasonal workers.  An Agricultural Labor Relations Board was created to supervise the elections of the farm workers.  Now the farm workers had the right to vote for a union that would represent them and demand better working conditions.

After years of court battles, César E. Chávez and a team of lawyers that supported the UFW succeeded in the abolition of “el cortito” (the short-handled-hoe).  The California Supreme Court outlawed the short-handled hoe in 1975.  For years, the growers had required farm workers to use this tool.  The farm workers would have to work for many hours bent over and walking very close to the ground in order to use “el cortito.”  The use of “el cortito” caused permanent injury to thousands of farm workers and they spent their lives in disabling pain.

The movement of César E. Chávez became part of a large, nationwide movement that worked to better the lives of poor people, conducted voter registration drives, and worked to extend civil rights to people who had been previously denied their rights.  Many people before César E. Chávez had tried and failed to organize farm worker and had thought that it was impossible to organize the farm workers.  Farm workers suffered unfair treatment because the powerful growers and corporations controlled the social, political, and economic structures in which workers lived.  César’ s movement caused changes to the power structure, changed the way people thought about farm workers, and led to social and economic justice.  The success of the movement made people believe anything was possible when people organized for justice and civil rights.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  
In the 1950s, a Civil Rights Movement began in the South and progressed across the United States.  The movement wanted to end discrimination.  Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a leader of a nonviolent Civil Rights Movement.  In the South, for many years, African Americans had been discriminated against in housing, education, and employment and had been denied equal access to restaurants, hotels, and other public places.  The main goal of the civil rights movement was to end such discrimination and guarantee equal rights and opportunities to all people.  Discrimination also existed in California against African Americans, Latinos, and other minorities.

Millions of Americans supported Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  The federal government passed laws that declared discrimination and segregation illegal.  The laws did not always guarantee that African Americans would be treated equally, and in the 1960s, African Americans increased their fight for civil rights.  Dr. King fought for the rights of people through nonviolent means including the use of boycotts and marches.  He believed that only love could change hate.  

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 banned discrimination because of a person’s color, race, national origin, religion, or sex.  If a person’ s rights are violated, they can file a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.  Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964 for leading a nonviolent civil rights movement.  An assassin killed him in 1968.  Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. inspired people of all races to work towards social and economic justice and civil rights for all people. 

Both César E. Chávez and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. worked to promote civil rights using nonviolent methods.  They both wanted social change, justice, and equal treatment for all people, especially the poor, and dispossessed.

Compare César E. Chávez to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Write a comparison chart on the board using these possible examples:

César E. Chávez
Used nonviolence to bring justice for farm workers
Led nonviolent marches
Led nonviolent boycotts
Brought about change for the rights of farm workers
Millions of Americans supported the farm workers because of his efforts
Was honored by the State of California with a State holiday
Was given the Medal of Freedom by President Clinton
Was the leader of the first successful farm worker’s union in California 
Brought changes to the State of California

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Led a nonviolent civil rights movement 
Was supported by millions of Americans 
Led nonviolent marches 
Led nonviolent boycotts 
Supported unions 
Believed that you could change hate through love 
Received the Nobel Peace Prize 
Was honored by a national holiday 

Have the students discuss similarities and differences between the two.

Show the students pictures of Coretta Scott King with César and read the excerpt from César E. Chávez’s speech entitled ‘Lessons of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’.  Then, return to the comparison chart and ask students if there is anything that they would like to add to the graph.  Ask the students to evaluate and to describe how César E. Chávez felt about Dr. King.

MY FRIENDS, TODAY WE HONOR A GIANT AMONG MEN: TODAY WE HONOR THE REVEREND MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

DR. KING WAS A POWERFUL FIGURE OF DESTINY, OF COURAGE, OF SACRIFICE, AND VISION.  FEW PEOPLE IN THE HISTORY OF THIS NATION CAN RIVAL HIS ACCOMPLISHMENTS, HIS REASON, OR HIS SELFLESS DEDICATION TO THE CAUSE OF PEACE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE.

TODAY WE HONOR A WISE TEACHER, AN INSPIRING LEADER, AND A TRUE VISIONARY.  BUT TO TRULY HONOR DR. KING WE MUST DO SOMETHING MORE THAN SAY WORDS OF PRAISE.

WE MUST LEARN HIS LESSONS AND PUT HIS VIEWS INTO PRACTICE, SO THAT WE MAY TRULY BE FREE AT LAST.  

WHO WAS DR. KING?

MANY PEOPLE WILL TELL YOU OF HIS WONDERFUL QUALITIES AND HIS MANY ACCOMPLISHMENTS. BUT WHAT MAKES HIM SPECIAL TO ME, THE TRUTH MANY PEOPLE DON’ T WANT YOU TO REMEMBER, IS THAT DR. KING WAS A GREAT ACTIVIST, FIGHTING FOR RADICAL SOCIAL CHANGE WITH RADICAL METHODS.

WHILE OTHER PEOPLE TALKED ABOUT CHANGE, DR. KING USED DIRECT ACTION TO CHALLENGE THE SYSTEM.  DR. KING WASN’T AFRAID OF TENSION,  

HE WELCOMED IT, AND USED IT WISELY.

IN HIS FAMOUS LETTER FROM THE BIRMINGHAM JAIL, DR. KING WROTE THAT  

“THE PURPOSE OF THE DIRECT ACTION IS TO CREATE A SITUATION SO CRISIS-PACKED THAT IT WILL INEVITABLY OPEN THE DOOR TO NEGOTIATION.”

DR. KING WAS ALSO RADICAL IN HIS BELIEFS ABOUT VIOLENCE.  HE LEARNED HOW TO SUCCESSFULLY FIGHT HATRED AND VIOLENCE WITH THE UNSTOPPABLE POWER OF NONVIOLENCE.

HE ONCE STOPPED AN ARMED MOB, SAYING “WE ARE NOT ADVOCATING VIOLENCE.  WE WANT TO LOVE OUR ENEMIES.  BE GOOD TO THEM.  THIS IS WHAT WE LIVE BY.  WE MUST MEET HATE WITH LOVE.”

DR. KING KNEW THAT HE VERY PROBABLY WOULDN’T SURVIVE THE STRUGGLE THAT HE LED SO WELL.  BUT HE SAID “IF I AM STOPPED, THE MOVEMENT WILL NOT STOP.  IF I AM STOPPED, OUR WORK WILL NOT STOP.  FOR WHAT WE ARE DOING IS RIGHT.  WHAT WE ARE DOING IS JUST.  AND GOD IS WITH US.”

MY FRIENDS, AS WE ENTER A NEW DECADE, IT SHOULD BE CLEAR TO ALL OF U.S.

THAT THERE IS AN UNFINISHED AGENDA, THAT WE HAVE MILES TO GO BEFORE WE REACH THE PROMISED LAND.

THE MEN WHO RULE THIS COUNTRY TODAY NEVER LEARNED THE LESSONS OF DR. KING.  THEY NEVER LEARNED THAT NONVIOLENCE IS THE ONLY WAY TO PEACE AND JUSTICE.   

OUR NATION CONTINUES TO WAGE WAR UPON ITS NEIGHBORS, AND UPON ITSELF.

THE POWERS THAT BE, RULE OVER A RACIST SOCIETY FILLED WITH HATRED AND IGNORANCE.

OUR NATION CONTINUES TO BE SEGREGATED ALONG RACIAL AND ECONOMIC LINES.

THE POWERS THAT BE, MAKE THEMSELVES RICHER BY EXPLOITING THE POOR.  OUR NATION CONTINUES TO ALLOW CHILDREN TO GO HUNGRY, AND WILL NOT EVEN HOUSE ITS OWN PEOPLE.  THE TIME IS NOW FOR PEOPLE, OF ALL RACES AND BACKGROUNDS, TO SOUND THE TRUMPETS OF CHANGE.  AS DR. KING PROCLAIMED,  “THERE COMES A TIME WHEN PEOPLE GET TIRED OF BEING TRAMPLED OVER BY THE IRON FEET OF OPPRESSION.”

MY FRIENDS, THE TIME FOR ACTION IS UPON US.  THE ENEMIES OF JUSTICE WANT YOU TO THINK OF DR. KING AS ONLY A CIVIL RIGHTS LEADER, BUT HE HAD A MUCH BROADER AGENT.  HE WAS A TIRELESS CRUSADER FOR THE RIGHTS OF THE POOR, FOR AN END TO THE WAR IN VIETNAM LONG BEFORE IT WAS POPULAR TO TAKE THAT STAND, AND FOR THE RIGHTS OF WORKERS EVERYWHERE.

MANY PEOPLE FIND IT CONVENIENT TO FORGET THAT MARTIN WAS MURDERED WHILE SUPPORTING A DESPERATE STRIKE ON THAT TRAGIC DAY IN MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE.  HE DIED WHILE FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHTS OF SANITATION WORKERS.

DR. KING’S DEDICATION TO THE RIGHTS OF THE WORKERS WHO ARE SO OFTEN EXPLOITED BY THE FORCES OF GREED HAS PROFOUNDLY TOUCHED MY LIFE

AND GUIDED MY STRUGGLE.

DURING MY FIRST FAST IN 1968, DR. KING REMINDED ME THAT OUR STRUGGLE  

WAS HIS STRUGGLE TOO.  HE SENT ME A TELEGRAM WHICH SAID “OUR SEPARATE STRUGGLES ARE REALLY ONE –A STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM, FOR DIGNITY, AND FOR HUMANITY.”

I WAS PROFOUNDLY MOVED THAT SOMEONE FACING SUCH A TREMENDOUS STRUGGLE HIMSELF WOULD TAKE THE TIME TO WORRY ABOUT A STRUGGLE TAKING PLACE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE CONTINENT.

JUST AS DR. KING WAS A DISCIPLE OF GHANDI AND CHRIST, WE MUST NOW BE DR. KING’S DISCIPLES.

DR. KING CHALLENGED U.S. TO WORK FOR A GREATER HUMANITY.  I ONLY HOPE

THAT WE ARE WORTHY OF HIS CHALLENGE.

THE UNITED FARM WORKERS ARE DEDICATED TO CARRYING ON THE DREAM

OF REVEREND MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. MY FRIENDS, I WOULD LIKE TO TELL YOU ABOUT THE STRUGGLE OF THE FARM WORKERS WHO ARE WAGING A DESPERATE STRUGGLE FOR OUR RIGHTS, FOR OUR CHILDREN’S RIGHTS AND FOR OUR VERY LIVES.

LIKE DR. KING I TOO HAVE A DREAM.  I HAVE A DREAM THAT FARM WORKERS, AND ESPECIALLY THEIR CHILDREN, WON’T HAVE TO FEAR THEIR SAFETY AND EVEN THEIR VERY LIVES WHEN THEY LABOR IN THE FIELDS.

César E. Chávez 
January 12, 1990

Read the following telegram from Dr. King to César E. Chávez, and ask the students to evaluate how Dr. King felt about César E. Chávez.

Telegram
From: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  
To: César E. Chávez

	You and your valiant fellow workers have demonstrated your commitment to righting grievous wrongs forced upon exploited people.  We are together with you in spirit and determination that our dreams for a better tomorrow will be realized.
                                                              Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Ask the students to write a paper that first defines civil rights.  Next, the paper should compare Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and César E. Chávez and find the similarities and the differences between the two.  Lastly, the paper should determine how these men changed California and America.  The paper should be written using the writing process and graded according to your school district’s rubric.

Have the students read their paper in small groups of four.

Solicit four volunteers from the class and have the students read their paper to the class.

Post a picture of César E. Chávez and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in the room.

Integrating Language:
The students will interact verbally with the teacher as the class goes over the vocabulary words and then again when they discuss similarities and differences between César E. Chávez and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  

The students will use reading and comprehension skills as the class reads the telegram from Dr. Martin Luther King to César E. Chávez and then again when they read the speech “Lessons of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.” written by César E. Chávez.  
 
The students will demonstrate and practice the writing process as they write a paper that compares the two men and evaluates the changes they brought about.

Finally, they will practice speaking skills as they read their paper to a small group and later to the entire class, if they choose to do so.

Enrichment:
The class may learn the songs “De Colores” and “We Shall Overcome.”  Both of these songs were theme songs for the movements of César E. Chávez and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The students may choose to organize a presentation of reports, songs, quotes, and speeches that relate to César E. Chávez and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and their efforts and contributions to the United States and humanity.  The students perform for another fourth grade class.

The teacher may ask volunteers to research the following topics for extra credit and have the “expert panel” present their research to the class:
Gandhi and nonviolence
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
César E. Chávez
The Civil Rights Movement
The Farm Workers Movement
Discrimination