"I'm proud of this symbol because my father and brother are the ones who actually designed it," said Freddy Chavez, whose uncle is the late civil rights leader Cesar Chavez.
They wanted a symbol simple enough for anyone to draw, yet powerful enough to carry the message of the union.
Cesar Chavez said: "All of us are looking for a place under the sun. By that, I mean a union that we can belong as farm workers, and it's going to be built by farm workers, and is going to be for farm workers."
To this day, Chavez family members feel the power of what's known as the "huelga bird."
"To my family, it means a lot of pride, having been able to break the chains of oppression," Chavez said.
"It pains me when I hear there are persons, criminal elements, gang members, that are doing anti-social things, preying on our population, on our communities, that are using that symbol for that, that hurts me deeply," Chavez said.
Freddy Chavez says the news would also hurt his Uncle Cesar if he were alive.
"He would see this as a challenge, and he would try to get that eagle back," he said.
