Click here to see the above photo and more of Senator Edward M. Kennedy, who died Tuesday at the age of 77, with Cesar E. Chavez of the United Farm Workers.
They are remarkable images.
What moves me so much about this man's history, looking past the failures and errors, is how deeply he and his brothers John and Bobby were committed to the civil rights struggles of their times. Without hesitation, without equivocation, they advocated for minorities and marginalized groups so far and distant from their own wealthy New England heritage, until the very end. It is as though these siblings saw it as an American imperative to do the work of social justice far and wide.
And Teddy, by his sheer longevity, did so the most.
Latinos and Mexican Americans have always had a way of saying that the Kennedys are "one of us." I am reaffirming that idea today with the help of Cindy Casares, who has detailed "Ten Things Ted Kennedy Did For Latinos." Among other things, Ted was a true champion of humane immigration reform, speaking to a multitude of marchers on the Mall in Washington at the height of the immigrant rights movement in 2006. Simply put, he believed that immigrants to the United States deserve a dignified doorway into the fabric of the nation, first and foremost, as a matter of principle -- which is more than we can say at the moment for our current president and his cabinet.
Listen to the crowd roar at the beginning of that clip; it's electrifying.
Day of the Dead 2009 is thus dedicated. ¡Viva Kennedy!