One Night in America: Robert Kennedy, Cesar Chavez, and the Dream of Dignity [Hardcover]

Courageous. -Ilan Stavans, author of Spanglish: The Making of a New American Language Robert Kennedy and Cesar Chavez came from opposite sides of the tracks of race and class that still divide Americans. Both optimists, Kennedy and Chavez shared a common vision of equality. They united in the 1960s to crusade for the rights of migrant farm workers. Farm workers faded from public consciousness following Kennedy's assassination and Chavez's early passing. Yet the work of Kennedy and Chavez continues to reverberate in America today. Bender chronicles their warm friendship and embraces their bold political vision for making the American dream a reality for all. Although many books discuss Kennedy or Chavez individually, this is the first book to capture their multifaceted relationship and its relevance to mainstream U.S. politics and Latino/a politics today. Bender examines their shared legacy and its continuing influence on political issues including immigration, education, war, poverty, and religion. Mapping a new political path for Mexican Americans and the poor of all backgrounds, this book argues that there is still time to prove Kennedy and Chavez right.Chronicles the warm friendship between Robert Kennedy and Cesar Chavez and embraces their bold political vision.Bender frames his history of American Latino political participation within a study of the friendship of Robert Kennedy and C?sar Ch?vez, who first met during JFK's presidential campaign. RKF oversaw outreach to Latinos, while Ch?vez headed the largest voter registration organization in California. Later, Ch?vez turned to rural union organizing of immigrant agricultural workers and called for help from RFK, who backed their 1966 strike. His backing of Ch?vez and the union, their shared belief in nonviolent activism, and their commitment to Catholic teachings on the poor created a bond between the son of Irish wealth and the Mexican farm worker. In turn, Ch?vez and the United Farm Workers Union worked tlc$