Mexican Americans are Mexicans who immigrated to America in the late 1800s and early 1900s. They left their home for a better life. The Mexican Revolution from 1910 to 1920 forced many to flee their homes. The United States had many available jobs at the time which attracted many Mexicans to immigrate.

César Chávez was born in Arizona in 1927. He had 5 brothers and sisters. He worked on the farm with his family until the Great Depression occurred and his family lost his land. He migrated to California with his family for work. He quit school in middle school to work full-time in the fields.

Chávez's family had trouble finding work in California and kept migrating around the state. The wages were low and they rarely had access to clean water and toilets. They often faced discrimination because they were Mexican American. Many people wanted to send Mexican Americans back to Mexico due to the lack of available jobs.

Chávez joined the Navy in 1944 to 1946 to gain skills for his civilian life.

When he finished, he went back to being a farm worker in California again. The workers were paid little or not at all for working long hours. Chávez joined the National Agricultural Workers Union in 1946 but there was little progress. When he was not working, he began to educate himself by reading about famous labor leaders such as Mohandas Gandhi.

Chávez met with Fred Ross in 1952 who organized Mexican Americans into barrios. Ross was part of the Community Service Organization. Chávez looked up to Ross and was inspired by his patience and understanding of people. Chávez traveled around California encouraging his fellow Mexican American workers to vote and have a say for their future. This work and future work led to Chávez becoming the national director of the Community Service Organization.

Chávez left the Community Service Organization in 1962 when they refused to organize a farm workers' union. He then started the National Farm Workers' Association. The Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee started a grape strike and boycott from 1965 to 1970. These groups merged in 1966.

The Filipino and Mexican Americans worked together to make a difference in their treatment. The strike gained support from Senator Robert Kennedy who visited Chavez in California to understand why there was a strike. By the end of their meeting, Senator Kennedy supported them.