# Dolores Huerta, labor leader and civil rights icon, dies at 96

> The co-founder of the United Farm Workers union and originator of 'Sí, se puede' has died at her home in Bakersfield, California.
- Title: Dolores Huerta, labor leader and civil rights icon, dies at 96
- Summary: The co-founder of the United Farm Workers union and originator of 'Sí, se puede' has died at her home in Bakersfield, California. Dolores Huerta, who…
- Keywords: dolores huerta, united farm workers, labor movement, civil rights, cesar chavez, farmworkers, activism, california, Dolores, Huerta, labor, leader
- Source: TIME — https://time.com/article/2026/10/28/dolores-huerta-labor-leader-and-civil-rights-icon-dies-at-96
- Author: Olivia-Anne Cleary
- Published: 2026-10-28T16:29:11+00:00
- Read time: 3 min
- Topics: dolores huerta, united farm workers, labor movement, civil rights, cesar chavez, farmworkers, activism, california
## Labor icon Dolores Huerta dies at ninety-six
Dolores Huerta, who co-founded the United Farm Workers union to secure better pay for laborers, has died at age ninety-six at her home in Bakersfield, California.
## She coined 'Sí, se puede'
Huerta campaigned for migrant laborers' rights throughout the nineteen sixties and seventies and is credited with coining the rallying cry 'Sí, se puede', 'Yes, we can.' The phrase inspired generations.

> Sí, se puede
## Obama adopted her slogan
Former President Barack Obama famously adopted Huerta's phrase 'Sí, se puede' and presented her with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in two thousand twelve.
## Her mother's advice shaped her
Upon receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom, Huerta credited her mother's advice: 'If you see people that need help, you have an obligation to help them, and you shouldn't wait for people to ask.'

> If you see people that need help, you have an obligation to help them, and you shouldn't wait for people to ask.
## Legislative victories for farmworkers
Huerta's legislative victories included a California measure allowing driver's license examinations in Spanish, extension of Aid to Families with Dependent Children to farmworker families, and disability insurance protections for agricultural workers.
## Co-founded UFW with Cesar Chavez
Huerta founded United Farm Workers with Cesar Chavez in nineteen sixty-two and served as its vice president for almost four decades. She worked closely with Chavez until his death in nineteen ninety-three.
## She accused Chavez of abuse
Earlier this year, Huerta came forward with allegations that Cesar Chavez had sexually abused her in the nineteen sixties.'I have kept this secret long enough.My silence ends here,' she said in a statement in March.

> I have kept this secret long enough. My silence ends here.
## The abuse resulted in pregnancies
Huerta said the abuse led to two pregnancies. She chose to keep them secret and arranged for the children to be raised by other families that could give them stable lives.
## Why she stayed silent for decades
Huerta said she had carried the secret for so long because she feared speaking out would compromise her life's work and risk progress made for laborers. She channeled everything into advocating for farmworkers.
## Named to TIME's most influential list
In April, Huerta was named on TIME's list of the one hundred most influential people of two thousand twenty-six. Her long-time friend Gloria Steinem, who died in September, wrote a tribute acknowledging the recognition.
## Born in New Mexico in nineteen thirty
Dolores Clara Huerta was born on April tenth, nineteen thirty, in Dawson, New Mexico, to Juan Fernández and Alicia Chávez. She was the only daughter and later moved to Stockton, California, with her mother.
## Arrested more than twenty-five times
In her decades campaigning for laborers and supporting immigrant and women's rights, Huerta was arrested more than twenty-five times for participating in non-violent civil disobedience activities and strikes.
## Beaten by police in nineteen eighty-eight
In nineteen eighty-eight, at age fifty-eight, Huerta suffered broken ribs and a damaged spleen after being beaten by baton-wielding San Francisco police during a protest against presidential candidate George H.W. Bush's policies.
## Honored for lifetime of service
Huerta was the first Latina inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame in nineteen ninety-three. In two thousand twenty-two, she won the Clinton Global Citizen Award for her trailblazing lifetime of public service.
## Foundation to open cultural center in twenty twenty-seven
Huerta is survived by her family and the Dolores Huerta Foundation, which she started in two thousand three.
## Key takeaway

Dolores Huerta, who co-founded the United Farm Workers union and coined 'Sí, se puede', has died at ninety-six in Bakersfield, California.