NATIONAL CITY, Calif. (KGTV) - Amid the fallout of the Cesar Chavez sex abuse allegations, the artist who painted him in a local mural is sharing his reaction.
In November 2022, a crowd was on hand for the unveiling of a four-panel mural at the San Ysidro Health - South Bay Health Center in National City.
The mural celebrates the legacy of civil rights leaders, including Dolores Huerta and Chavez, both now involved in a story forcing communities to rethink honors of Chavez, in name and in art.
"To me, he was a great leader. A great person that helped people. Now, I don’t know what to think about more," Anna Coronado, who lives near the mural.
Among the speakers at the unveiling was internationally known muralist Mario Torero.
"It is a moment, to us, to the humanity that belongs to you," Torero said in 2022.
Torero was not available for an interview today. His wife, Sarah Mondragon, spoke on his behalf.
"It's a very difficult moment for him. It's a difficult time," Mondragon said. "It's just a shock, a shock.”
Mondragon, who heads the nonprofit Barrio Artists Partnership, calls the revelations a blow to the Chicano movement celebrating the Chicano identity.
"There's been many challenges during the movement, and this is another one. It’s an opportunity for reflection," Mondragon said.
Mondragon said she and her husband hope the mural can be appreciated for the ideals it embodied when it was created.
"I think that the art should still be honored for what it represented. I feel like the joy is in community and unity, and now more than ever, we have to reinforce that. The ideas that he stood for are still here with us," Mondragon said.
As for the fate of the mural, Torero knows the decision is not his.
"Community murals live on the street where people are living or where the community is living. He would defer to what the residents in the area felt was appropriate for themselves," Mondragon said.
A spokesperson for San Ysidro Health says leadership will be discussing the mural at a board meeting next week.
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