Push to Rename Cesar Chavez Street Chuck Norris Blvd. Sexual Misconduct Allegations Surface Decades Later

One man is pushing liberal San Francisco to rename Cesar Chavez Street to Chuck Norris Boulevard, sparked by explosive revelations rocking the legacy of the late farmworker icon. Three women who say they were raped by Chavez, were silent for decades, but came forward with the allegations this month. Two are in their 60's and one is now 96. Chavez has been dead since 1993.

Just days after action hero and conservative favorite Chuck Norris passed away on March 19, 2026, a petition surfaced calling for the name change on the heels of a bombshell New York Times investigation. The Times exposed long-buried allegations that Chavez sexually abused women and underage girls during his time leading the United Farm Workers in the 1960s and 1970s. These allegations included allegations by two women who were teenage girls at the time that they were repeatedly raped by Chavez.

Adding fuel to the fire, Dolores Huerta-Chavez's longtime co-founder of the UFW-broke her silence in a March 2026 statement, revealing that Chavez sexually assaulted her twice back in the 1960s. She described one encounter as manipulation and pressure she felt unable to refuse due to his position of power, and the second as forced against her will. Both incidents reportedly resulted in pregnancies, with Huerta secretly arranging for those two children to be raised by other families for stability.

She maintained relationships with them over the years, and they grew close to her other kids.Huerta, now nearly 96, has 11 children total from multiple relationships: two daughters from her first marriage to Ralph Head; five from her second marriage to Ventura Huerta; and four with her longtime partner Richard Chavez-yes, Cesar Chavez's own brother. The arrangement with Richard was seen as unorthodox at the time but endured for decades until his death in 2011.

Meanwhile, cities across California are scrambling to distance themselves from Chavez's name. The state has rebranded the holiday as Farmworkers Day, San Francisco renamed its annual parade the Dolores Huerta Festival, and other honors are being scrubbed amid the fallout.

Enter the petition from former San Francisco District 7 supervisor candidate Stephen M. Pinto, who launched it shortly after Norris's death. The online drive urges the Board of Supervisors to honor the late martial arts legend and "Walker, Texas Ranger" star-known for his unbreakable toughness and no-nonsense persona-instead of the tarnished labor leader.

Public reactions online have ranged from outright mockery (memes galore about Norris roundhouse-kicking bad legacies) to serious calls for reverting the street to its original name, Army Street, or simply leaving it alone. Some suggest honoring Huerta more prominently, though her own complicated personal history has surfaced in the debate.

Officials note that any street renaming in San Francisco requires extensive community input, hearings, and approvals-making "Chuck Norris Boulevard" a long shot in the famously progressive city, especially given Norris's outspoken conservative views.

Still, in an era where statues fall and names get erased overnight, the petition highlights just how fast legacies can crumble when the full story comes out. Whether it's Chuck Norris Boulevard or back to Army Street, one thing's clear: the farmworker movement's icons are under intense scrutiny like never before. Stay tuned-Santa Monica Observer will keep watching as this story develops.