del valle," i'm damian trujillo, and today we celebrate the legacy of cesar chavez. his family is in our studio. and also the secretary of state, alex padilla, here in our studio on a busy "comunidad del valle." male announcer: nbc bay area presents "comunidad del valle" with damian trujillo. damian: we begin today with the celebration of the life of cesar chavez, and with me is a board member of the chavez family vision, mauricio mejia, to talk about the local events. welcome to the show, mauricio. mauricio: thank you very much, i appreciate the invitation, and we're excited to be here. damian: well, what an honor for you it must be to be asked to be part of this great board. mauricio: absolutely, it's one of those you just don't--can't expect to be on. and being on it is just an amazing experience. damian: so, we have a--i mean, there's a breakfast that's coming up in celebrating the life and legacy of cesar chavez for his birthday. i mean, we're talking about jose hernandez, the astronaut,

being here to celebrate. mauricio: yes, another board member that sits with us, tony arreola, kindly went above and beyond to invite jose hernandez, who's the astronaut, first latino astronaut to--his background is in agriculture. he's from the central valley, and he's been kind enough to say yes. he's going to participate and he's coming out. he's the keynote speaker of the breakfast. damian: and you're giving the si se puede award to the former mayor of los angeles. mauricio: correct, antonio villaraigosa is receiving the si se puede award, and we're excited about him being a part of this breakfast as well. damian: where do you see--where do you envision the chavez family vision going from here? you guys are taking it to a next level, i think. mauricio: absolutely, i kind of switched--it's not a joke in our meetings, but we talk about where we--where the organization and the breakfast was last year, taking it from the holiday inn, which again, for many years has been a great part of the breakfast, to now 250 to almost

500 person capacity breakfast to the fairmont hotel. and the fairmont has been above and beyond and cooperative, and very giving and gracious in being a part of this breakfast there. they really want this to stay now moving forward, so it's exciting. damian: and again, the chavez family vision continues to lead the way when it comes to community efforts or scholarships that you're giving away. that's what benefits from the breakfast. but there's--i mean, there's a march going on, we're celebrating, was it 25 years since the passing of cesar? i mean, there's a lot of things to commemorate this. mauricio: yeah, it's we're--there's so much, and we're trying to compress the message so that it's effective. and even with this year, we did some rebranding, some re-imaging with some of the past stuff, and wanted to make it very impactful. so yes, we're commemorating 25 years of cesar chavez's passing. and in the commemoration it's, you know, celebration of his life and what he's done, and to continue the legacy.

damian: and for you to be, i mean, again, part of this organization, talk about what it takes to be a representative here because you can't just walk in and say, "hey, i want to help out," you got to roll up your sleeves. mauricio: no, no, no, it's definitely--well, i didn't know what i was walking into. so, another board member, xavier campos, former council member and also part of the board. and he invited both tony and i, and said, "hey, i want you to be a part of this board," and kind of did the screening. and next thing i know, it's, "oh man, we really got to roll up our sleeves on this." and there's a lot of work that needs to be done. but you know, for me, it's not a--it's the work is--it's in me to do it. it's not not--it doesn't even feel like work. it's just so natural. and it's great for us to really come together and put all of our resources. the goal is to give back to the community, to continue to help students, and to, really, continue the legacy of cesar chavez. damian: yeah, and the reward is at the end. the annual breakfast, again, is happening on the april 2 at the

san jose fairmont with astronaut jose hernandez and also antonio villaraigosa, former mayor of los angeles will be there. he's a candidate for governor. it's happening at the san jose fairmount. but log on to the chavez family vision website and learn more about all the activities around this very important holiday. yeah, thank you so much, mauricio, for the work that you're doing. all right, up next here on "comunidad del valle," the family of cesar chavez.

chavez, and we're honored to be joined once again here on "comunidad del valle" by cezar's sister, rita chavez medina, and cesar's niece also, barbara medina aranda. welcome back to the show. rita, can you imagine it's been 25 years since we lost cesar? rita chavez medina: it's like yesterday for me. every day, you know? every day, every day is the same. i always feel his spirit among us, especially when we do, you know, things like this. and i've been here and there and everywhere. and you know, it's just--i don't know

how to say it, but it's just-- damian: and i've asked you this in the past, but did you ever imagine because he's kind of at martyr status right now, did you ever imagine that your brother would reach that kind of status in this world? rita: never i did, never. i knew he was always--he always, you know, he's--whatever he wanted, he did all the time, even when he was young. even was a little boy, six years old, he was determined. i took him to school because my parents couldn't go. you know, my dad had to work the farm, my mom had little ones, plus she didn't know english. anyway, i was the oldest, so i had to take him to school. i always say this because it was something that--he was only six. he was determined to do how he wanted to do. he goes--the teacher says, "cesar, you have to sit in the first grade." we didn't have kindergarten in those days, we just had first and second. i was already on second. and the teacher goes--he says, "no, i'm not sitting--" nothing in english, pure español, just spanish. "no, i'm not sitting there, i'm sitting with my sister." and the teacher says, "no, cesario," 'cause that's his real name, cesario, you know?

"you sit over there." "no, i'm going home," he ran out the door through the fields. i ran after him. i brought him back, i said, "you better sit 'cause tonight, you know what's going to happen with dad?" he goes--i went back and by then the teacher had a desk by me. he says, "i better get ahold of this little brat." damian: keep cesar in class. rita: yeah, so he was all excited. i don't remember he was there two or three days, but he was there. he went home and my dad goes, "what happened?" he goes, "i don't like the teacher." and he never liked that teacher, you know? she had the teacher for two years, he never liked that teacher. and but he got settled afterward. my dad told him, "you know, you have to let go of your sister's hand. you're going to grow up to be a big man." he never did, we were always together. damian: he did become a big man. barbara, so i was--25 years ago, i was a senior at san jose state, and i remember when i heard the news. where were you, and how impactful was it then, and is it still now? barbara medina-aranda: i was at work. and i had--i was a buyer at the time, so i had gone to go get some things. i came back and the receptionist looks at me and she says,

"there's a really important call for you." i said, "who is it?" she goes, "your sister." i said, "oh, she's bugging." so, i went to the conference room and she told me the news. i said, "are you kidding?" she goes, "no." all she told me was they found him dead. so, all these things went through my mind, that somebody had killed him, they found him on the road or whatever. so, it was just, like, a shocker. damian: because there's always been--there was always that fear, right? barbara: yes, he always had threats. but he always said he was never going to be assassinated. he was just going to buy--he was going to die in his sleep, that's what he always told us. and that's what happened. he just was reading a book. and when they found him that morning, the book was there, but he was gone. and it was just a shocker, total shocker 'cause obviously you don't expect to hear that kind of news. so, you know, it was pretty, you know, stressful, so i just left--i left work. i said, "i can't work right now, i got to go." damian: and i mean, not only was he not forgotten 25 years ago, but i was, you know, mentioning to your mom, i mean, to reach martyr status almost is pretty incredible,

but it's understandable and rewarding to know that that's where he is because of what he did and what he sacrificed. barbara: yes, he's still very--he still gets a lot of honors even though it's been 25 years, but people still are honoring him, remembering. and he deserves it 'cause he deserves much more credit than he--than he's been getting. and so, that's why we're still working on it, make sure that his legacy still keeps alive. and that's what we do at chavez family vision, and the family obviously, so. damian: and this has been--this is always a busy time of the year for you because you're asked--you're pulled in every direction to speak, and the breakfast, and marches-- barbara: we have a lot of stuff going on right now, so. damian: one of them, let's talk about the a's real quick, the oakland athletics are having cesar chavez day on the 31st. barbara: yeah, that was a surprise for us when my brother rudy called and said, "guess what's happening? the a's are going to honor our tio cesar on march 31, which would've been his 91st birthday. and they're offering, you know, the family to come

in free and any supporters." so, we have over 230 people coming, and that's going to be his day. the whole day they're going to be--my mom taped a few little segments, interviews. so, every other inning, they're going to show her on the jumbo screen. [speaking foreign language] damian: you going to the game? barbara: yeah, she's going to throw out the first pitch. damian: no way, wow, well, we have to have all the news cameras there for that. how do you feel, rita? you're almost 93, you're the matriarch now. you're the eldest of the--of cesar's sisters and brothers. rita: i just--i don't know, i just feel--every day, i just get up and do my work, and i don't think about my age, you know, you don't think about old, you think about young. you get younger every day, not old. i don't know, i just--you know, i'm ready to-- i just had an interview with--and i didn't know they were going to do this, they said they're going to put on the big screen through the play, i said, "i wouldn't have done it." i told, "maybe i won't go." they said, "you better go, mom." i said, "if i knew they were going to put it on the screen, i would have never done it." after they finished, they went to the house,

and the interviewer says, "we're going to put on the screen during the game." i said, "oh lord, no." barbara: yeah, the a's are going all out. damian: so, are you--i mean, i'm a giants fan, but i think i'm going to be an a's fan that day, yeah. barbara: i will support them. damian: also happening in the memory of cesar is the san jose library system is having some events as well. barbara: yes, next week. they're going to show a short video, "the common man." then afterwards, we'll just have like a panel discussion, some family members will be there and other people in the community just to give stories about cesar and his legacy. so, anyone's invited to go. it'll be on the 27th starting at 6:30. damian: all right, you know what's neat, rita, is when i travel to go see my mom in greenfield, i still see the farm workers. they're still there, they're still doing their thing. but things have changed a little bit. they have shade where they can eat. they have water, and then a few more amenities than you and i had when we were farm workers, but we're getting there. but i would imagine you would agree that we're not there yet as far as taking care of the farm workers.

rita: yeah, we still need a lot of help. like he would say, "my people need help." he always called farm workers his people. he says, "my people." no, it is--it does a lot of difference 'cause when i was a farm worker, the worst thing for us ladies when i had to use the restroom. there was nothing. you had to go in the fields. we got all together, all kind of women, you know? the men at least went behind the cars. but us women, that was the hardest thing for me. the hardest thing is when i had to use the restroom, for every woman. 'cause it was, you know, where you gonna hide? there wasn't always a tree or something. damian: no, you were in the middle of the field. rita: no, just plain field. that was very hard. at least now they have, you know, port-a-potties and--thanks to the union. damian: well, we're blessed to still have you with us and to be as active and as vibrant. celebrations, again, go on for-- rita: i'll be here bugging you every year. [speaking foreign language] damian: this is your home. there is the web address, actually, if you want those oakland athletics tickets and watch rita throw out the first pitch. and you can log on to the website, chavezfamilyvision.org, and learn more.

any final thoughts, barbara, before we let you go? rita: and i told richard, "i'll let my sister do it 'cause she never gets in anything." and she has a better arm than me." damian: well, we'll see, we'll be witness to that, any final thoughts? barbara: well, we're just grateful that you invited us here to keep the legacy alive on your program and for all the people that's still are honoring our uncle and, you know, keeping his memory alive. and we still have lots more to do. damian: absolutely. thank you so much. barbara: thank you for having us. damian: anytime, rita, and up next here on "comunidad del valle," the secretary of state, alex padilla, stay with us.

oh hi sweetie, i just want to show you something. xfinity mobile: find my phone. [ phone rings ] look at you. this tech stuff is easy. [ whirring sound ] you want a cookie? it's a drone! i know. find your phone easily with the xfinity voice remote. one more way comcast is working to fit into your life, not the other way around. of making sure that the election process here runs adequately. we're honored to be joined here on "comunidad del valle" by the secretary of state of california, the honorable alex padilla, welcome to the show. alex padilla: thank you, first time here. damian: yeah, no, you know what, the door's always open. you're welcome to come back anytime. so, i explained a little bit, but talk about your role. what is your role as secretary of state? alex: so there's--the secretary of state in california

has multiple responsibilities. you know, all the business filings, so for the entrepreneurs in your audience, they know that when they first started their business, they registered with the secretary of state. we have a campaign finance responsibility, all the state candidates and campaigns had to report through us, where they're raising the money from, how they're spending it. and i'm also the custodian of the state's archives. so, anybody who's interested in some california history can come through our office or increasingly through our website to see what we have in the collections. but the most visible part, and probably the most important part of our job is overseeing elections, everything from voter registration, voting rights, make sure elections are administered fairly, and increasingly in this day and age, making sure that our elections are cyber secure. damian: yeah, talk about that because, i mean, everybody is talking about that in washington dc and here as well. you've been prominent when the debate comes up about cyber security. where are we?

have we learned lessons? are we still vulnerable? alex: absolutely; look, and it's always an important balancing act to play to make sure that our elections are secure but accessible, right, to any eligible citizen to be able to register to vote without any unnecessary barriers, and to be able to cast a ballot without any unnecessary barriers. the good news is in 2016, there's absolutely zero evidence that there was any hack or breach or compromise of any type. damian: but they were trying. alex: by the russians or anybody else. not that they weren't trying, right? and so, our defenses worked. but we can't rest on our laurels. we know that those who try to create that chaos, try to undermine our democracy will keep trying and get more sophisticated in those efforts. so, we have to continuously improve what we have in place, you know, upgrading servers and firewalls, and 24/7 monitoring of our infrastructure, constantly training our own staff and even local elections officials, right? 'cause elections are conducted by the counties to make sure

that we're ready for 2018 and 2020 and beyond. damian: so, the house intel or senate intel committee has been meeting. and you probably know more than we do about what was discussed and what came out of it, but one thing that the senator kamala harris proposed is to go into paper ballots across the board. we do that in santa clara county. i'm not sure what the rest of the state looks like, but what's your take on that? alex: right, so a lot of the recommendations you're going to hear come out of washington is from a national perspective, right? what are the best practices or recommendations to strengthen our election system and our voting systems? the good news is a lot of those recommendations are based on what california already has in place. it's been the law in california for more than ten years. you know, the vast majority of californians vote on the paper ballot. and the very few instances where it's not a paper ballot, where you use something to help make your selections for accessibility purposes, there still is a requirement in california there's a paper trail that the voter can verify their selections.

it's something that we can count and recount or audit if necessary to ensure the accuracy and the integrity of the results. another thing that's important for the public to remember is, by law in california, none of these machines can ever be connected to the internet. so, we make it impossible to systematically hack or rig the election, and that's the machines that we use to mark the ballot, to cast our ballot, or to count our ballots. so, that separation from the internet goes a long way in protecting us. damian: as the secretary of state, how scary is it to know that the russians are trying to get in? alex: yeah, you know, when we were told by the department of homeland security that california was one of their potential targets, you know, i have to operate under that assumption. you know, we're not a battleground state in a presidential election, but we're california, right? we're a high value target. so, i have to operate under the assumption that whether it's, you know, agents of the russian government, or the north korean government, or just hackers out there,

both foreign and domestic, will try to create chaos with us, so we're constantly on alert. damian: you were state senator before you were secretary of state, you served in local office. how big of a learning curve was it to become the secretary of the state? alex: become secretary, you know, it's both on policy and substance, it's been a little bit of a crash course. and we--i knew why i wanted to be secretary of state, to get more people registered, more people voting, more people participating in democracy. but it is different being in the executive branch, where, hey, you're responsible. you know, i'm not dabbling in a lot of other policy issue areas as when i was in the legislature, but the responsibility that we have on the election side and the other programs through the secretary of state's office, we are where the buck stops in terms of responsibility. damian: absolutely, well, the secretary of state's office, you can get ahold of them and we'll show you the information on your screen, there is our website. you can find out more about the process and what they're doing to keep the electoral process. we'll be back with the honorable alex padilla, stay with us.

the honorable alex padilla here on "comunidad del valle." we have a logo that y'all sent us, it's the motor voter for teenagers. talk about what this effort is all about. alex: right, well, we know that as a voter in california, you can't go to the polls and vote unless you're registered first. and we've done great work in getting more people to register to vote 'cause you can register to vote online now. but there's still about five and a half million californians who are eligible that are not registered to vote. and so, you know, to better target young people, we're now offering pre-registration for 16 and 17-year-olds. if you're a citizen, you can fill out that form now on paper or online. and when you turn 18, your name will begin to appear on the rolls, and you're ready to go vote in that first election after your 18th birthday. but we're also excited about launching on april 16, so in a few weeks, automatic voter registration.

and what that--how that will work is anybody who's eligible when they apply for or renew a driver's license or a state id, they'll be systematically registered to vote in the process. damian: whether they ask for it or not. alex: well, they can choose to opt out, right? if you really don't want to be a voter, then you have to check the box that you're not going to be a voter. damian: i don't see why they wouldn't in this day and age. alex: but otherwise, the default is you're going to be added to the voter rolls. and again, that puts you on the list to get the voter information guide, to get the sample ballot from the county, and yes, get ready for candidates to start knocking on your door to ask for your vote. and there'll be no more barriers between you and being able to cast your ballot on election day. damian: all right, and i'm told that the pre-registration numbers have increased dramatically, what does that mean? alex: it's been a huge hit, you know, the law was relatively recent, it went into effect about a year and a half ago. about a year ago was when we made online pre-registration possible. and as we sit here today, more than 93,000 young people in the state of california have pre-registered to vote.

a bunch of them have turned 18 since, others are still waiting. the bulk of those numbers was in a non-election year, so i think the fact that this is an election year, more young people are going to be signing up. and you look at what's going on around the country, right? unfortunately, way too many shootings and violence at schools, but with the recent incident in parkland, florida, you know, god bless those young people, they're articulate, they're active. and they're not just talking about gun safety, they're talking about civic engagement, civic responsibility, registering, and voting. and we're seeing those numbers tick up here in california too. damian: how encouraging is that? i mean, when you're talking about the next generation, being that proactive when it comes-- alex: oh, absolutely, you know, we're always hopeful that young people are the leaders of tomorrow, the leaders of tomorrow. if what we're seeing right now in high schools across the country is any indicator, we're in for some strong leadership in a few years. damian: aside from the cyber security issues, what makes your job maybe a little difficult in tackling issues and that concern? alex: you know, there's the nuts and bolts of how do we get

more people registered, how do we get more people to vote. there's the cyber security of it. the other big challenge i've seen the last few years is having to push back a lot of myths and, frankly, outright lies from people, including the president of the united states, on whether or not there's massive voter fraud. there's been studies after study, investigation after investigation, and they all say the same thing. voter fraud is exceedingly, exceedingly rare, which means all the laws, the safeguards, and the protections are working. what it is for those who try to repeat these myths is they're trying to create that doubt, they're trying to suppress the votes by getting into people's heads that maybe their vote doesn't matter. so, we have to overcome that with the truth about it, the integrity of the elections that do exist. yes, your vote matters, and your vote matters in every single election, not just when it's time to vote for president. damian: you've been very proactive, and i read your tweets all the time, you've been very proactive in getting that message out that, no, voter fraud does not exist.

or i mean, it exists, but at a very minimal scale. alex: right, very minimal scale. and again, it's a reflection of our current safeguards are working. we do take it seriously, and it's part of that balancing act between making sure that our elections are secure, but also very accessible to eligible voters. and we have a good record here in california. damian: let me get a little personal now. what's it like to have the name padilla there on the door at the state capital? alex: you know, i have to admit, i'm very proud as the first latino elected secretary of state in california. and--but with that comes a lot of responsibility too to serve, and to serve well, and try to hold that political door open for others to follow, whether it's in this office or, other, you know, positions of political responsibility. damian: i know you enjoy your seat, you like what you're doing, and you're going to be there for a while. what's next after your term expires? alex: well, we'll see if--i got a few years ahead of me, hopefully, as secretary of state, and we'll see what the world looks like, you know, there's a governors

race and all the constitutional offices are up this year on the ballot, so don't forget to vote. in a couple years, there'll be another presidential contest, so the political landscape is fluid and dynamic, we'll see where the opportunities are to keep serving. damian: well, good luck, i know that when the voter turnout is at 35%, that's not good news for your office. but we want to see it in the 70s maybe, if not higher. alex: oh, at least, you know? we have these ups and downs. in a presidential year, there's more attention, more energy, higher turnouts. what people call the midterm elections, there tends to be a little bit of a drop. we're hoping to have an increase from the last governor's race, for example, and to keep the overall trend increasing. a big part of it is getting people registered first and then making it easier for people to vote. so in the coming years, you'll see counties starting with san mateo this year that are changing how they conduct the election. voters will automatically get their ballot in the mail a month before the election and you'll have options for how to cast that ballot.

you can mail it back, a ballot dropbox anywhere in the county. or imagine as the voter, having the flexibility of voting anywhere in the county, not just the polling place close to where you live, over the course of 11 days, not just that one day, election day. more choices of when, where, how to vote, that's coming to san mateo county this year and a lot more counties starting in 2020. damian: sounds like democracy to me. there is the information again if you want to log on and find out more about the secretary of state's office and how we can make voting easier for you at home. thank you so much for the work that you're doing in keeping our voting capacity safe. alex: absolutely. thank you. damian: all right, and if you'd like to get ahold of us, there's our contact information, you can follow me on twitter, my handle is @newsdamian. also, pick up a copy of "el observador" newspaper and support your bilingual weeklies all across the bay area.

watching television that's s educational and informational. the more you know on nbc. lauren: i'm lauren thompson and this is the champion within. today, learn why american freestyle skier maddie bowman is inspired by her mother every time she hits the slopes. maddie: i've had some amazing support from my mom that i think a lot of other people don't get. she's like kind of my rock. lauren: and find out why tour pro jimmy walker has an appreciation for his home state of texas. jimmy: south texas is very laid back, everybody is super friendly and chill and it's the way of life. we've got everything right there. lauren: then, olympic skier gus kenworthy takes a life-changing trip to uganda. gus: i went to see what it was like to live in a refuge camp and also just show how sport gives these