 "Photo: Courtney Dudley")
 "Photo: Bruno Morlan")
A statue depicting labor organizer and social activist Cesar Chavez was unveiled Tuesday on UT's West Mall.
The bronze statue, designed by Massachusetts artist Pablo Eduardo, shows Chavez holding a flag over his left shoulder. It is the first statue of a Hispanic at the University.
The decision to erect a statue honoring UT's Latino heritage was largely the result of efforts made by the Latino student organization "We're Texas Too," which formed in 2000, according to the Cesar E. Chavez Statue Project Web site.
Chavez was selected to be the subject of the statue by student referendum in the fall of 2002.
Funding for the statue was created through a special tuition fee that was approved by the Texas Legislature and a student referendum in 2003.
The fee also created funding for a statue of former Texas congresswoman Barbara Jordan, championed by the Orange Jackets student organization and scheduled for construction in 2009, according to UT's Office of Public Affairs.
A ceremony was held on the Main Mall Tuesday prior to the unveiling. Mexican-American studies senior Stacy Torres, the student chair of the of Cesar E. Chavez Statue Committee, opened the ceremony.
"In the 124-year history of this amazing University, today marks the first day that Latinos and our contribution to this institution will be embodied in a sculpture for all to enjoy," Torres said.
She said in an interview she felt Chavez would be honored by the fact that the statue was the result of a student initiative and not an administrative decision.
"He really reached out to students to be a part of his movement," Torres said. "It comes full circle today."
Torres said she feels the statue brings deserved recognition for the positive impact Latinos have had on the University.
"Latinos have contributed a great deal to this University in a lot of ways," Torres said. "I think that this statue embodies their contribution."
Juan Gonzalez, vice president of student affairs, said during the ceremony that he felt Chavez, who never sought recognition for his work, would have been reluctant to accept such an honor.
He said the statue would serve as a constant reminder of the "noble obligation" Latino students have: to remember the individuals who fought for the opportunities celebrated today and the responsibility current students have to educate those who come after them.
U.S. Undersecretary of Education and UT alumna Sara Martinez Tucker was the keynote speaker for the event.
Martinez Tucker said that the ceremony should not only honor Chavez, but the students who made the statue a reality as well.
She said that the statue should stand as a reminder that individuals should not be judged by the family and circumstances they are born into, and that regardless of one's hardships there are no excuses for complacency in the never-ending struggle for social justice.
Martinez Tucker then requested that whenever members of the audience pass by the statue they ask themselves, "What difference am I making?"
Other speakers at the ceremony included Student Government President Andrew Solomon, University President William Powers, "We're Texas Too" founder Frances Valdez, former Texas Sen. Gonzalo Barrientos and Rep. Dawnna Dukes, D-Austin.
Chavez's granddaughter, Christine Chavez, thanked the University on her grandfather's behalf at the unveiling. She recalled life growing up with the labor organizer as her grandfather.
"'In our family, we don't have picnics - we have pickets,'" she recalled Cesar Chavez once saying.
Immediately following the unveiling, members of the Student Farmworker Alliance held signs directly behind the statue requesting higher wages and better working conditions for the Immokalee farm workers in Florida.
Latin American studies graduate student Sean Sellers was among the picketers.
Sellers said he felt alliance's action was appropriate for the event.
"We think Cesar Chavez would be in complete support of the Immokalee workers," he said.
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