Under a brilliant blue sky, indigenous drummers and dancers led a crowd in a joyous celebration of peaceful activism in the Cesar Chavez March for Justice.
Thousands gathered in the heart of the west side to march from Guadalupe Street through downtown to the Alamo.
“I am very excited that the 21st anniversary is alive and well to preserve the legacy of Cesar Chavez, who practiced non-violence,” said Jaime Martinez, a 50-year activist who chairs the group that sponsors the event.
Gabriel Quintero-Velasquez, who helped organize the march, praised the life-long commitment that Martinez has invested in honoring the legacy of the civil rights leader.
“We have a unique chairman that is battling cancer, and I have watched this man organize for many years, and as he's had this battle. Nothing has knocked him down,” Quintero-Velasquez said. “Today it's a challenge for him to be here, and he's here and he reminds us that we all believe in something because we march with our values of non-violence to spread them to the City of San Antonio.”
Jason Langeway said that he is a math teacher at the KIPP School, and he brought a large group of students to the event to teach them about community involvement first-hand. He believes his group may be a new generation of leaders that can carry forward the cause for which Chavez fought.
“We have a group of high school students here who are energized and enthusiastic and ready to leave a lasting mark on this world at KIPP San Antonio,” he said.
Keith Hom came with a large, enthusiastic group from VIA transit.
“It's very encouraging to see the type of turnout that we're seeing today," Hom said.
Ylani Hernandez is a student leader at Texas A&M-San Antonio. She said that she was proud to represent her family and her race at the march.
"Just the climate with everything in politics has been really ugly. Communication hasn't been really direct, and I think we're here to let the people know that we're not ready to go away,” Hernandez said. “We're not ready for this wall and that we're here to stay.”
As part of the ceremony, Martinez released a flock of doves over the crowd.
“If we're going to win, we have to be non-violent, so let us not destroy personal property when we protest, let us be non-violent,” he said. “Let us be peaceful. Let us use the greatest commandment that God gave us: That's love each other, not hate.”