CESAR E. CHAVEZ MONUMENT, The Arch of Dignity, Equality, and Justice By Judith F. Baca.
In the interior of the arch, the central mural depicts a contemplative Chavez as a farm worker leader and organizer looking over the California fields where the historic grape strike took place, with the farm workers represented metaphorically as twisted vines. Above in a cloud, Chavez is joined by Robert F. Kennedy as he breaks a 25-day fast accompanied by his wife Helen and his mother Juana. The image highlights fasting as a cornerstone to his philosophy of non-violence. La Virgen de Guadalupe, the indigenous patron saint of Mexico and the revered symbol of the farm workers, blesses the struggle with roses. Lurking in the sky, a calaca (skeleton) represents the ever present need for vigilance, to ensure decent conditions for the workers and reminds us that the struggle is not over in the fields.