directed by Lorena Parlee & Richard Ray Perez USA, 2014, English/Spanish, 100 minutes
In 1988, Cesar Chavez embarked on what would be the last act of protest in his remarkable life. Driven in part to pay penance for feeling he had not done enough, Chavez began his ‘Fast for Life,’ a 36-day water-only hunger strike, to draw attention to the horrific effects of unfettered pesticide use on farm workers, their families and their communities. Using never-before-seen footage of Chavez during his fast and testimony from those closest to him, directors Richard Ray Perez and Lorena Parlee weave together the larger story of Chavez’s life, vision and legacy. A deeply religious man, Chavez’s moral clarity in organizing and standing with farmworkers at risk of his own life humbled his family, friends and the world.
