Cesar Chavez was a voice for the voiceless. a leader for the leaderless. and a force for hope and change during a time when our farmworkers so desperately needed both. For Cesar Chavez. the bleak conditions facing Californias farmworkers were much more than empty statistics. Mr. President. we see statistics all the time. The challenge is to get beyond the statistics and reach the people. Having served as a migrant worker himself. Cesar Chavez knew what it was like to live with inhumane conditions. to get sick without any benefits. to support a family on impossibly low wages. even. Mr.