Dolores Huerta is an American labor leader, Chicano civil rights activist and feminist activist known for co-founding the United Farm Workers alongside Cesar Chavez and Gilbert Padilla. Her role in the Delano grape strike and campaign for women’s reproductive rights have made her a prominent figure in the Latino community.
In 2002, Huerta founded the Dolores Huerta Foundation, which aids in uplifting marginalized communities through grassroots organizing and civic engagement. She also served as an honorary co-chair of the 2017 Women’s March in Washington, D.C.
For over 60 years, Dolores Huerta has kept the truth hidden about the sexual abuse and violence she endured by her co-founder Cesar Chavez. The statement comes after an onslaught of abuse reports such as Ana Murguia and Debra Rojas, who shared their experiences with The New York Times. Both were children when Chavez preyed on them. Huerta, in a force of union has shared her story, to legitimize their statements.
“I am nearly 96 years old, and for the last 60 years have kept a secret because I believed that exposing the truth would hurt the farmworker movement I have spent my entire life fighting for,” she said.
Huerta’s abuse would affect the labor community if she dared to share her story. Chavez is a prominent figure in the Chicano movement. He has schools, boulevards, murals and statues of him. He is the face of the Chicano labor movement.
Chavez was able to form close relationships with these women because the community idolized him as a hero.
“The farmworker movement has always been bigger and far more important than any one individual,” Huerta said. “Cesar’s actions do not diminish the permanent improvements achieved for farm workers with the help of thousands of people. We must continue to engage and support our community, which needs advocacy and activism now more than ever.”
“I carried this secret for as long as I did because building the movement and securing farmworker rights was my life’s work,” she continued. “The formation of a union was the only vehicle to accomplish and secure those rights and I wasn’t going to let Cesar or anyone else get in the way. I channeled everything I had into advocating on behalf of millions of farmworkers and others who were suffering and deserved equal rights.”
Chavez’s legacy has been debated in recent years with his belief that undocumented immigrants were strike breakers, and his strong advocacy for deportations under the Illegals Campaign. These positions contributed to division and led to schisms within the United Farm Workers.
Following Huerta’s statements, numerous statues of Chavez have been removed, including one in Dallas, Texas. Street signs, school names and murals honoring him are in the process of removal.
Huerta’s statement comes at a time when the United Farm Workers are still struggling with wages and autonomy. The union had planned a march for March 18, 2026, which has since been rescheduled. Hundreds of farm workers will protest the Trump administration’s new rule that slashes farm worker wages. This comes at a time with frequent ice raids; many judges claim are unconstitutional with a shortage of farm workers.
