The news about Cesar Chavez was devastating to all of us, but not as devastating as what he did to his victims

Sadly, we'll have to come up with a new name for our own Cesar Chavez Elementary, where so many Davis kids have thrived

Throughout my life I have had very few heroes, other than every member of my family.

One of those few was Cesar Chavez.

I have said publicly, on a number of occasions, that I regarded him as a true American hero.

The seemingly unbelievable news of his sexual abuse of young girls, some not even yet teenagers, hit hard.

The story broke in The New York Times after nearly five years of painstaking research by reporters Manny Fernandez and Sarah Hurtes.

Yes, Cesar Chavez, who died in 1993, is not here to defend himself, but it’s impossible to ignore what The Times has reported.

Describing their exhaustive study, Fernandez and Hurtes wrote: “The abuse allegations appear to be part of a larger pattern of sexual misconduct by Mr. Chavez, much of which has never been publicly revealed. The Times investigation found that Mr. Chavez also used many of the women who worked and volunteered in his movement for his own sexual gratification. His most prominent female ally in the movement, Dolores Huerta, said in an interview that he sexually assaulted her, a disclosure she has never before made publicly.

“Many of the women stayed silent for decades, both out of shame and for fear of tarnishing the image of a man who has become the face of the Latino civil rights movement, his image on school murals and his birthday a state holiday in California.

“The findings are based on interviews with more than 60 people, including his top aides at the time, his relatives and former members of the U.F.W., which he co-founded with Ms. Huerta and Gilbert Padilla. The Times reviewed hundreds of pages of union records, confidential emails and photographs, as well as hours of audio recordings from U.F.W. board meetings.”

They also wrote of the Cesar Chavez so many of us had come to know and admire.

“More than 30 years after his death, Mr. Chavez has become only more revered in the Latino community, as President Trump’s efforts to limit immigration and scale back rights threaten to destroy many of the gains secured by decades of his work.

“Through a series of grueling fasts, grape boycotts and marches that captured the world’s imagination, Mr. Chavez drew a spotlight to the plight of the American farmworker. He not only improved wages, living conditions and health care for generations of farmworkers and their families but also strengthened the political power of Latinos, giving their voice and concerns an urgency and moral authority on the national stage.”

I would only add to that description that he was revered far beyond the Latino community.

While those accomplishments still stand, they are completely overwhelmed by the incredible harm he brought to these young girls and women with regularity throughout his celebrated life.

So yes, California should cancel the Cesar Chavez holiday.

The Davis School Board should remove his name from Cesar Chavez Elementary, which was originally named West Davis Elementary when it opened in 1954.

Good luck explaining such a name change to all those proud kids who consider that school their second home.

We can save the debate over what new name we’ll choose for another day, but his name should come down immediately.

In our divided world, there are many people who will try to discredit the entire farmworkers movement and those who have worked tirelessly to improve their quality of life.

We can’t let that happen because of the horrific crimes of one man.

The cause remains just.

As Dolores Huerta, still a force at age 95, would say, “Sí, se puede.”

Reach me at bobdunning@thewaryone.com