Civil Rights Commission Calls for National Cesar Chavez Day

March 31 is Cesar Chavez Day. It’s an official state holiday in California, but it’s not a federal holiday–not yet. But the U.S. Civil Rights Commission wants to change that.

Chairman Martin Castro announced on Monday that the U.S. Civil Rights Commission has sent letters to President Obama and congressional leaders, urging them to create national holidays commemorating the births of Chavez on March 31; and Fred Korematsu on Jan. 30.

Korematsu was a Japanese-American who battled against the internment camps established after the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor.

The letters ask the president issue an executive order declaring those two days national holidays in recognition of both men’s contribution to upholding civil rights and liberties for all U.S. citizens.

The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights is an independent, bipartisan agency charged with monitoring federal civil rights enforcement.

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