Cesar Chavez Allegedly Sexually Abused & Groomed Young Girls, Report

A new investigation published by The New York Times on Wednesday claims to have "extensive evidence" that Cesar Chavez -- the leader of the United Farm Workers who died in 1993 -- sexually abused and groomed young girls ... and "used" women in his movement "for his own sexual gratification."

According to the NYT report, one alleged victim, Ana Murguia, claims she was 13 when Chavez -- who was 45 at the time -- "kissed her and pulled her pants down."  She says he instructed her afterward to not tell anyone, allegedly telling her ... "They’d get jealous."

The alleged incident happened over half a century ago and the report says there were "dozens" more sexual encounters between them over the following four years.

She told the paper she "wanted to die" ... and by age 15 she had attempted suicide "multiple times."

Around the same time, the NYT reports a woman named Debra Rojas claims she was only 12 when Chavez started abusing her, "groping her breasts" in his office.

Rojas claims they had sexual intercourse at a California motel when she was 15 -- which would be considered rape, as she wasn't old enough to legally consent.

She claims Chavez groomed her, explaining that at the time she "had love for him" because he allegedly made comments about moving to Mexico with her, being jealous of boys who were around her, and even telling her "I love you."

Neither woman had spoken publicly about the alleged abuse until now ... although Rojas reportedly posted about it in a private Facebook group many years ago, writing "Wake up people. This man u march for every year molested me." She says she ultimately deleted it after getting backlash.

In addition to these claims, Chavez's UFW cofounder Dolores Huerta told the NYT that Chavez assaulted her, too.

And after the report was published, the 95-year-old labor-rights activist shared a statement on Medium, describing two instances of alleged abuse -- one where she says she felt "manipulated and pressured," and the other where she says she was "forced" -- and revealing both led to pregnancies.

Huerta said the babies were raised by families "that could give them stable lives." And while she says she has "a deep relationship" with those children, "no one knew the full truth about how they were conceived until just a few weeks ago."

Huerta writes she hasn't come forward in 60 years because she "believed that exposing the truth would hurt the farmworker movement I have spent my entire life fighting for."

She had told NYT that she didn't go to the cops at the time of her alleged assault because of "their hostility toward the movement, and she feared that no one within the union would believe her."

The publication claims that elements of both Murguia's and Rojas' stories have been "corroborated in documents, emails, itineraries and other writings from union organizers, supporters of Mr. Chavez and historians."

NYT says they couldn't independently verify Huerta's account -- because she never told anyone about it -- but they say she described the alleged events in a "startlingly matter-of-fact manner."

The publication claims that "several other women" are victims of Chavez's abuse ... reporting that they interviewed more than 60 people in their investigation -- including relatives, "top aides" and UFW members -- and scoured union records, confidential emails, photographs and audio recordings of UFW board meetings.

The report says many of the alleged victims never spoke about their experiences out of "fear of tarnishing the image" of the celebrated civil rights leader ... adding that a lot were "discouraged from speaking out."

Chavez’s family addressed the accusations in a statement Tuesday night ... saying they were "not in a position to judge."

They say they "honor the voices of those who feel unheard and who report sexual misconduct," and the allegations against Chavez are "deeply painful."

However, NYT report says a "handful" of relatives were "aware for years" about the sexual misconduct allegations ... claiming there's "no evidence" that they investigated or even acknowledged the victims.

The report also alleges some former UFW leaders knew, too.