1. Cesar Estrada Chavez was an important labor leader. He fought for the rights of migrant farm workers in the United States. Chavez knew firsthand of the many hardships farm Workers faced. when Chavez was a young boy, his family lost their farm during the great depression. The Chavez family became migrant workers, toiling side by side for long hours in the fields. At night, they slept in a tent or outside. like other migrant workers, they moved from farm to farm, following the harvest seasons of the vineyards and fruit orchards in California.​