Cesar Chavez and Martin Luther King, Jr. both believed in peaceful, non-violent protests (Chavez, 1990). "He learned how to successfully fight hatred and violence with his unstoppable power of nonviolence" says Chavez of King (Chavez, 1990). King knew that he probably would not survive the struggle that he led, but he urged the members of the movement to continue, even if he was killed. He believed that what he was doing was right and that it should not be stopped by anyone. King recognized that there comes a time when people get tired of being trampled on by "the iron feet of oppression" and must fight back, but he still believed in fighting back in a nonviolent way.
King fought a tireless crusade for the rights of the poor, to stop children from going hungry, to put a roof over people's heads, and urged people of all races and backgrounds to join the cause and fight for the rights of everyone (Chavez, 1990). King was dedicated to the rights of the workers who were being exploited long before such causes became popular. He was murdered while supporting a strike in Memphis Tennessee. He died fighting for the rights of sanitation workers in that city. He gave his life for what he believed in, and never wavered from his theme of nonviolent protests.
Cesar Chavez learned a lot from Martin Luther King, Jr. and King's methods and ideology formed the basis of his own fight for the farm workers, mostly in California, but the repercussion went far beyond just one state (Chavez, 1990). Chavez organized the National Farm Workers Association, which later became the United Farm Workers Union (UFW) (The Struggle in the Fields). Just as Martin Luther King, Jr. led his freedom marches, Cesar Chavez led a 10,000 strong march on Sacramento in support of striking farm workers, which began as a smaller strike by Filipino workers against one winery and spread to Mexican farm workers throughout the state of California.
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