If you are a Latino in the United States you probably have heard the name Dolores Huerta, or that of her political partner Cesar Chavez. These two authentic dynamos revolutionized the way in which migrant workers are treated. With Chavez, Huerta founded the National Farmworkers Association (now United Farm Workers or UFW). At age 89, she is still a civil rights activist and labor leader, and she, of course, is a fierce advocate for women’s rights. She is a true legend whose story should be taught in every classroom.

These are some facts about her amazing and impactful life!

1. Her full name is…

Dolores Clara Fernández Huerta and she was born on born April 10, 1930. She was born in the mining town of Dawson, New Mexico, which helped shape her political ideals.

2. Her grandparents were Mexican migrants

Her parents were Juan Fernández and Alicia Chávez. Juan was the son of Mexican migrants and worked as a coal miner in Dawson. He later worked with braceros (Mexican workers who went to the United States on a special visa to join the labor force) in Colorado, Nebraska, and Wyoming.

3. Her father’s stories made her think about the work that unions do for worker’s rights

As often happens, political ideas tend to travel from generation to generation. Hearing her father’s stories, Dolores got in touch with the idea of unions, which in the case of Mexican and Mexican-American workers were used as a force against injustice. Her parents divorced and her father was a state legislator.

4. She was raised by her mom in a farming community

A big part of Dolores’ political ideals has to do with farm work and what manual labor is truly worth. This is an echo of her childhood in Stockton, California, where she was raised by her mother. Her mom was a pillar of the community, a generous spirit for whom paisanos were family.

5. The family owned a hotel and a restaurant

And Dolores’ mom would often give discounts or even free accommodation to struggling workers. She certainly led by example, and her impact was multiplied once Dolores found her political voice

6. She started her life as an activist when she was in high school

When she was at the Stockton High School she was a majorette and member of numerous clubs.

7. A teacher graded her unfairly in high school, she considered it was racial bias

She knew right there and then that she needed to fight for her rights and the rights of minorities. She got herself a teaching credential, and taught primary school, until…

8. She left her job as a teacher and became an activist, having witnessed injustices suffered by her students

She is quoted as saying: “I couldn’t tolerate seeing kids come to class hungry and needing shoes. I thought I could do more by organizing farm workers than by trying to teach their hungry children”. Respect, sometimes change needs to start in the household and the field, rather than in the classroom, and Dolores identified that.

9. 1955: the year she started changing the world

In 1955 Huerta helped activist Fred Ross kick off the Stockton Chapter of the Community Service Organization. She soon proved to be a force to be reckoned with. She soon took charge of the Stockton Chapter. In 1960 she co-founded the Agricultural Workers Association and in 1962 she got together with Cesar Chavez to found the National Farm Workers Association, which changed the lives of thousands of field workers and their families.

10. She was a master negotiator

It was not easy in the 1960s to negotiate as a woman, let alone a woman of color. But that is just what she did in 1966, negotiating a contract between grape pickers and the Schenley Wine Company. It was the first time that farm workers argued for their rights with an agricultural business. Eso, chingaos!

11. She also organized the now famous Delano grape strike in 1965

California is one of the largest producers of table grapes not only in the United States, but the entire world. Well, Huerta led a boycott against the grape industry to achieve collective bargaining, which was signed in 1970. Huerta was able to communicate the plight of farmers to consumers, also a first in American activism.

12. She has worked as a lobbyist for life-changing laws that have improved the lives of workers

If you or a family member have taken the California driver’s test in Spanish, for example, you have Huerta to thank for. Laws like this have made California a much more inclusive society.

13. She has been arrested over 20 times

This is a result, of course, of her activism. These arrests have been the product of civil disobedience non-violent acts such as boycotts or strikes!

14. She is still an active political activist

She serves in the boards of various progressive organizations, such as People for the American Way, Consumer Federation of California, and Feminist Majority Foundation.

15. She witnessed a major political assassination: Robert F. Kennedy’s 

As “Bobby” delivered his victory speech in the California presidential primary election, Dolores Huerta stood by his side. Moments later, on that fateful June 5, 1968, he would be shot.

16. She was once beaten severely by a policeman

This happened in 1988, during a peaceful demonstration in San Francisco. She was protesting the platform of presidential candidate George H.W. Bush. She had broken ribs and her spleen had to be removed in an emergency surgery.

17. She won a lawsuit and guess what she did with the proceeds?

Huerta being Huerta, she donated it for the benefit of farm workers. Her case also led to a reform in how San Francisco police deal with crowd control.

18. She established the Dolores Huerta Foundation in 2002

The Foundation’s objectives: “community benefit organization that organizes at the grassroots level, engaging and developing natural leaders. DHF creates leadership opportunities for community organizing, leadership development, civic engagement, and policy advocacy in the following priority areas: health & environment, education & youth development, and economic development.” We are lucky to have people like her.

19. She has received numerous accolades in her lifetime

Her awards include the Eugene V. Debs Foundation Outstanding American Award, the United States Presidential Eleanor Roosevelt Award for Human Rights and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. She is also in the National Women’s Hall of Fame,  where she was introduced in 1993, the first Latina to achieve this.

20. Huerta had a relationship with Richard Chavez, Cesar’s brother

The two never married, but they had four children. She had two previous marriages that ended in divorce.

21. Last but not least, she coined a very famous phrase… 

Sí se puede… yes we can. Wow.

Ever since she organized farm workers in the 1960s as they fought for better working conditions and fair wages, Dolores Huerta has been committed to fighting for civil rights. The 87-year-old is the focus of a documentary that gives audience members an intimate look at what it takes to devote your life to activism and fighting for those less fortunate. Huerta and the director of the documentary, Peter Bratt, sat down with mitú to talk about activism then and now and what people can do to fight a system they might not agree with today.

Director Peter Bratt is telling Huerta’s story through “Dolores,” a documentary covering her decades of activism.

#LosAngeles: @elgavachillo will join us at the 7:30pm screening SATURDAY at @landmarktheatres Nuart.

A post shared by DOLORES The Movie (@doloresthemovie) on Sep 8, 2017 at 8:54am PDT

Bratt, also a writer and producer on the documentary, thinks that Huerta’s story is more crucial now than ever. In the ’60s, even though many farm workers were undocumented and couldn’t speak English, Huerta was able to get them involved in the fight for their rights. Huerta organized farm workers through education and motivated them to see beyond the constraints that held them back.

“Nobody thought that was possible, but with organization, she was able to convince them that they could and I think a lot of people are discouraged right now with the current political climate,” Bratt says. “People are feeling, similarly, that their voice doesn’t count. As she says, a lot of us, we are educated, we are citizens, we do speak the language so all the more we can get organized and create change.”

Huerta credits the success of the farm workers movement to different groups coming together to fight for a common goal and exercising their right to vote.

Sundance Film Festival announces first wave of 2017 films – U.S. Documentary Competition – Dolores / U.S.A. (Director: Peter Bratt) #Dolores #sundance #SiSePuede

A post shared by Dolores C. Huerta (@doloreshuerta) on Nov 30, 2016 at 3:28pm PST

Huerta remembers how civil rights groups — African-American groups, feminist groups, environmental groups, Puerto Rican groups, and labor rights groups — all came together to fight for the farm workers. But it wasn’t just through marches and demonstrations. Huerta says voting made a difference — something she believes contemporary activists should keep in mind.

“It’s wonderful that we’re marching and protesting but if people do not march to that ballot box, if we don’t elect and campaign for people who are progressive and going to represent us, then nothing is going to change,” Huerta says. “The policies that Trump is trying to roll back or policies that he’s enacting that are against the people are going to stay there. We’ve got to vote.”

Bratt says creating a coalition of civil groups led to Huerta’s success and will, in turn, lead to the success of immigration reform.

Director, Peter Bratt, subject Dolores Huerta and mural of our executive producer Carlos Santana. #doloresthemovie @doloresthemovie @doloreshuertafdn www.doloresthemovie.com

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Bratt points out that the fight for farm workers began as a labor struggle then turned into a fight for racial justice. Once the farm companies used pesticides while the farm workers were on the field, it turned into an environmental issue. Huerta was even able to get the feminist movement involved as she fought to be a voice in a male-dominated community.

“The Dreamers, they need coalition support so I really hope that activists today move away from silo thinking and silo organizing because really all of those struggles are interconnected and we have to build coalitions,” Bratt says. “That’s the only way we’re going to get victories.

When asked about fighting back today, Huerta says, “I say vote a wall of resistance in the Congress.”

These are some of our new favorite people! #doloreshuerta stopped by @radicalmonarchs in #berkeley to see what these young ladies have planned for the future. #sisepuede radicalmonarchs.org

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“A wall of representation. A wall of resistance,” Huerta says. “That way we not only change some of the changes that Trump is making but stop some of the other policies he is trying to pass.”

Huerta admits that the fight in the ’60s is very similar to the fight now but that’s how it’s always been.

We want you!!! Join people from all over the state who are coming to the Central Valley to turn out voters and wake this SLEEPING GIANT! Join us THIS WEEKEND* for voter registration and crucial civic engagement! Training and food will be provided. Saturday, 10/25/14 from 9am – 2pm and Sunday, 10/26/14 from 3:30pm – 8:30pm at DHF GOTV Office of Bakersfield, 1527 19th St, 2nd Floor, Bakersfield, CA 93301 OR Saturday, 10/25/14 from 9am – 2pm at the DHF GOTV Office of Arvin, 141 North A St, Suite J, Arvin, CA 93203 *Civic engagement opportunities also available during the week and next weekend. Please call (661) 322-3033 or email volunteer@doloreshuerta.org Or, SIGN UP HERE TO MAKE AN IMPACT http://fs30.formsite.com/dhfdevelopment/form1/index.html

A post shared by Dolores C. Huerta (@doloreshuerta) on Oct 20, 2014 at 2:51pm PDT

Huerta says that we have seen this kind of action before with Operation Wetback in the 1950s, which was a mass deportation attempt after World War II. Yet, despite all of the fighting and threats, the government inevitably circles back to amnesty for undocumented immigrants.

“They say that the more things seem different the more they stay the same and this fight for immigrant rights has been going on every 20 years for decades. At the end of it, we ultimately end up with an amnesty program,” Huerta says. She adds: “We are seeing that same scenario that is playing out. But the one thing we have is that our numbers are so much bigger now and we have more political emphasis now than we did back then.”

When the fight gets tough, Huerta stresses that activists have to keep the faith alive to make sure it all works out.

Executive producer Carlos Santana, Dolores Huerta and director Peter Bratt.

A post shared by DOLORES The Movie (@doloresthemovie) on Jan 20, 2017 at 12:24am PST

“We see the Democrats in the Congress who are coming forward and putting in legislation for the Dreamers,” Huerta says. “If we can look down the road into the future, it’s going to happen. We are eventually going to get immigration reform. Not just for the Dreamers but or everybody else. But we know that we have to struggle and we have to keep that hope and the faith alive and know that we have to keep on going forward and keep organizing and just going.”

Bratt says those against Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and the Dream Act are on the wrong side of history.

#nyc #premiere of DOLORES with #peterbratt #doloreshuerta #carlossantana! #pbs #documentary #sisepuede

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“Striking DACA is a moral crisis,” Bratt says. “It reveals a moral crisis in America right now. The American people are good at heart and will do the right thing but sometimes they need a little help to see that.”

Huerta says DACA recipients need to make sure that their safety isn’t used to further harm the rest of the undocumented community.

“We can’t let our anger turn into violence or to hate,” Huerta says.

Dolores Huerta is a leader in the farm worker, women’s, and civil rights movements and today we celebrate her for #HispanicHeritageMonth. pic.twitter.com/ugoNijLLtq

— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) September 19, 2017

“We’re going to use that energy that we have and take that fear that we’re feeling right now and turn it into an energy to do something. As they say, when your adrenaline goes that you’re going to fight or you’re going to run. Well, we’re not going to run. We’re going to stand here and fight. There’s a lot of people behind them. This is a journey we’re all on.”

Learn more about Dolores Huerta’s tips on fighting injustice below.

And you can check out the trailer for the “Dolores” documentary here.

READ: This Chicano Photographer Told Us Why Cesar Chavez Has Left A Lasting Impression With Latinos

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