Linda Chavez
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- This article is about the conservative (and former) unionist. For the current unionist, see Linda Chavez-Thompson.
Linda Chavez (born June 17, 1947 in Albuquerque, New Mexico) is a prominent Hispanic-American conservative author, commentator, and radio talk show host. She is of mixed Mexican American (father) and Anglo American (mother) parentage.
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[edit] Education
Chavez earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Colorado in 1970.
[edit] Background with unions
Starting in 1975, Chavez was employed within the inner circles of the United States second largest teachers' union, the American Federation of Teachers. She was responsible for editing that organization's publications, and was a close confidante of Al Shanker, the AFT's president. While she believed in President Shanker's personal philosophy of unionism, she eventually came to feel that many in the organization were intent on moving the union in another direction after Shanker's inevitable departure. She later wrote that the more she learned about the goals of these newer union leaders, the less she felt comfortable in the organization. She left the AFT in 1983, causing what she stated was a painful personal rift between her and Shanker.
Chavez, though a former union official, is now an ardent critic of unions. Chavez's rivals counter that she is a union buster, and has sought to limit the ability of American workers to form labor unions.
[edit] Career in Republican administrations
Chavez has held a number of appointed positions. In 1983, though she was still ostensibly a Democrat, Chavez was appointed by President Reagan to be Staff Director of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, a position which she held for two years. In 1985, Chavez switched her registration to Republican, and was appointed White House Director of Public Liaison. Other positions to which she has been appointed include: membership on the Administrative Conference of the United States (1984-1986), and Chair of the National Commission on Migrant Education (1988-1992).
In 2001, President George W. Bush nominated her for Secretary of Labor, but the nomination was withdrawn after it was revealed that she had allegedly employed an illegal immigrant who lived in her home. Chavez contended that she had not actually employed the woman, but had merely provided her with emergency assistance.[1] The woman Chavez allegedly employed (who is now a legal citizen of the United States) also insists she was not an employee of Chavez, and credits Chavez with helping her at a time when she needed it most. A subsequent investigation of the matter by the FBI found Chavez was not guilty of any wrongdoing. However, following the Nannygate scandals of Kimba Wood and Zoe Baird in the Clinton Administration, the issue forced Chavez to withdraw.
[edit] Run for public office
In 1986 Chavez moved to Maryland to run as a Republican for the United States Senate against Democrat Barbara Mikulski. Chavez was accused of making Mikulski's sexual orientation a central issue of the campaign by the Washington Post, who misquoted Chavez's claim that Mikulski was a "San Francisco-style George McGovern liberal." The Washington Post did not realize that the line was a play on Jeane Kirkpatrick's 1984 Republican National Convention "Blame America First" speech, and instead the Post reported Chavez was herself directly implying Mikulski was a homosexual. The use of "San Francisco" as an adjective by conservatives is a widely understood euphemism for "gay," due to the city's reputation as a gay mecca.[2] Much of the media following the campaign picked up on the story and went with it. Chavez went on to lose to Mikulski by over 20%. [3]
[edit] Recent work
Linda Chavez is a syndicated columnist and a Fox News political commentator. She is the Chair of the think tank Center for Equal Opportunity, a conservative organization opposed to affirmative action and bilingual education.
As they do with most prominent conservative commentators, the left-leaning organization Media Matters for America maintains a list of controversial statements that she has made since May of 2004 [1].
Her strong conservatism has been controversial to some in the Mexican-American community, as some consider her a "sell-out" or "vendida." Chavez counters that the American tradition is for individuals to think and speak for themselves, and that the straitjacket of 'group-think' is a bigger sell out. Chavez is in favor of strong measures on illegal immigration and has written in favor of a guest worker program proposed by George W. Bush.
However, her stance as a conservative Roman Catholic is also relatively new. Her husband is Jewish and their children were raised in his faith. She also was known as a "pro-choice Catholic" for most of her public life.
[edit] Family
She is married and is the mother of three grown sons, David, Pablo, and Rudy, and grandmother of 8. She currently resides in Purcellville, Virginia.
[edit] Trivia
- In 2000 she was named a Library of Congress Living Legend.
- Chavez quit PBS's "To the Contrary" after a May 13, 2000 incident in which host Bonnie Erbe asserted on the air that Chavez is more likely to be hit by lightning than to be raped at her age. The comment was said during a discussion on gun control and whether it was necessary for Chavez to obtain a gun to defend herself against a potential rape. Chavez believed a person should be able to own a gun for protection. Erbe argued against the right to bear arms.
- If she had been confirmed by the United States Senate, Chavez would have become the first Hispanic female member of the United States Cabinet.
[edit] Bibliography
- Betrayal: how union bosses shake down their members and corrupt American politics, 2004 (ISBN 1-4000-5259-9)
- An Unlikely Conservative: the transformation of an ex-liberal, or, how I became the most hated Hispanic in America, 2002 (ISBN 0-465-08904-6)
- Out of the Barrio: toward a new politics of Hispanic assimilation , 1991 (ISBN 0-465-05431-5)
[edit] References
- ^ Chavez Withdraws As Labor Nominee Associated Press article in the January 9, 2001 Washington Post, accessed online November 22, 2006.
- ^ Code Pink November 27, 2002 article by Michael Signorile in the New York Press, accessed November 22, 2006.
- ^ Linda Chavez: Homophobic Career January 9, 2001 article by Michael Signorile, accessed online November 22, 2006.
[edit] External links
- Official site
- Biography from Center for Equal Opportunity web site.
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Chavez, Linda |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | American political commentator |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1947-06-17 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Albuquerque, New Mexico |
| DATE OF DEATH | |
| PLACE OF DEATH | |
