Dolores Huerta, Co-Founder of Farm Workers Union, Dies at 96

Bakersfield, California: Dolores Huerta, who co-founded the United Farm Workers union with Cesar Chavez in 1962, died on Wednesday at her home. She was 96. Her team confirmed the death in a statement released through her foundation, noting she was surrounded by her family. A cause of death was not released by her team; a family spokesperson, Erik Olvera, told the New York Times that she died of cancer.

Huerta served as vice president of the union for nearly forty years. She worked alongside Chavez until he died in 1993. Her organizing work in the 1960s and 1970s centered on the rights of migrant laborers. She is credited with creating the phrase "sí, se puede," which translates to "yes, we can." Former President Barack Obama later used the phrase. Obama presented Huerta with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012.

During that 2012 ceremony, Huerta discussed the advice her mother once gave her: "If you see people that need help, you have an obligation to help them, and you shouldn't wait for people to ask." She said she taught people "how to come together and be able to fight" for their rights. The obituary released by her foundation states that she was one of the few women lobbyists of her era and became a formidable advocate for people who could not afford one. Her legislative work included a California measure that allowed driver's license examinations in Spanish, the extension of Aid to Families with Dependent Children to California farmworker families, and disability insurance protections for agricultural workers.

In March of this year, Huerta spoke publicly about abuse she said she suffered at the hands of Chavez during the 1960s. In a statement, she said, "I have kept this secret long enough. My silence ends here." She said the abuse resulted in two pregnancies, and she arranged for the children to be raised by other families. Huerta said she shared the account after an investigation published by the New York Times revealed accusations that Chavez groomed and sexually abused multiple girls and women within the movement. She said she had carried the secret because she feared the disclosure would compromise her work for laborers.

Earlier this year, TIME named Huerta to its list of the 100 Most Influential People of 2026. Gloria Steinem, who died in September, wrote a tribute for that list. Steinem said, "We can all learn from the courage and conscience Dolores and others have modeled. The truth about Chavez reminds us to look honestly at the behavior of everyone, including our leaders, and to lend support to those who may be hurt by misused power."

Born Dolores Clara Huerta on April 10, 1930, in Dawson, New Mexico, she was the daughter of Juan Fernández and Alicia Chávez. Her parents divorced when she was three, and she moved to Stockton, California, with her mother. She studied at the University of Pacific's Delta College, now known as San Joaquin Delta College. Huerta was arrested more than 25 times for non-violent civil disobedience activities and strikes. In 1988, during a protest against the policies of presidential candidate George H.W. Bush, she suffered broken ribs and a damaged spleen after being beaten with batons by members of the San Francisco police force. She and others filed a civil rights lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in San Francisco.

Huerta is survived by her family and the Dolores Huerta Foundation, which she started in 2003 after returning to California's Central Valley. The foundation's mission statement says it works to inspire and organize communities to build volunteer organizations empowered to pursue social justice. The foundation has said it plans to open the Dolores Huerta Peace and Justice Cultural Center in the Central Valley in 2027.