Las Cruces, Santa Fe mull renaming Chavez elementary schools

LAS CRUCES — Two New Mexico elementary schools named for Cesar Chavez may soon have their names changed along with other monuments and public entities across the state.

Las Cruces Public Schools will open a public discussion about renaming its Cesar Chavez Elementary School on Tuesday, and a similar discussion is likely to take place this week before the Santa Fe school board for a similarly named school site. 

Reaction in New Mexico has been swift since allegations in a New York Times investigation last week claimed the revered civil rights leader and labor organizer raped and sexually assaulted underage girls.

The report prompted Dolores Huerta, the 95-year-old New Mexico icon who co-founded the National Farm Workers Association with Chavez, to come forward with her own account of coerced sex with Chavez in the 1960s that conceived two children. Huerta kept the secret for six decades, she wrote, "because building the movement and securing farmworker rights was my life's work."

Within a day, New Mexico leaders all the way up to the state’s congressional delegation began calling for Chavez’s name to be removed from streets, buildings and institutions and consider the disposition of murals depicting him. Some statements maintained the movement Chavez helped lead was not defined by a single individual.

“His name should be removed from landmarks, institutions, and honors,” U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján stated last week. “We cannot celebrate someone who carried out such disturbing harm.”

The bombshell report landed in the middle of spring break for Las Cruces schools, but the board of education is set to discuss the revelations and the prospect of changing the elementary school’s name during Tuesday evening’s public session.

LCPS Board of Education President Pamela Cort said any name change would take place in collaboration with the community, as directed by a LCPS policy that requires public input on the decision and of potential new names.

In 2020, the district voted to change the name of Oñate High School on the east side of town to Organ Mountain High School. The school had been named for Spanish conquistador and colonizer Juan de Oñate y Salazar.

“I think that consideration of a name change is warranted given the difficult and painful truths that have recently been revealed about Cesar Chavez,” Cort wrote to the Journal. “I believe it is crucial to not tie such a significant organization with one person, and a name change would not minimize the important work that was done nor the sacrifices made by everyone who contributed to the United Farm Workers.”

In Santa Fe, where another Cesar Chavez Elementary School is located, a school district spokesman said Monday the idea of a school name change could be discussed at a board meeting later this week.

Such a change would require the school board to direct Santa Fe Public School Superintendent Christine Griffin to appoint a committee to work with her on the possibility of a new name — much like the Las Cruces policy.

"We remain committed to engaging thoughtfully with our community and ensuring that any decisions are made through the appropriate processes and with careful consideration," the Santa Fe Public Schools said in a statement last week. 

Algernon D’Ammassa is the Journal’s southern New Mexico correspondent. He can be reached at adammassa@abqjournal.com. 

Dan Boyd covers state government and politics for the Journal in Santa Fe. Follow him on X at @DanBoydNM or reach him via email at dboyd@abqjournal.com.