Latino community members in Connecticut are remembering the late civic rights leader Dolores Huerta through service, leadership, and advocacy.
Huerta died Wednesday at 96. She is best known for co-founding the United Farm Workers union, during which she coined the phrase “sí, se puede” – a principle of the movement that became widely popularized thereafter.
“When I heard of her passing, it was a moment of peace. She was 96 years old, so it was to be expected, but surprising because she was so alive,” said CEO and founder of Latinas in Leadership Inc. Marilyn Alverio. “I was surprised that it happened so soon.”
Alverio met Huerta in May when Huerta visited Hartford to accept the Living Legend Award at the 23rd annual Latinas in Leadership Symposium.
Alverio said Huerta was humble, praiseful, and vibrant in the moments they shared together.
“The way that she talked to you, it was like you were the only person in the room,” she said.
Alverio invited Huerta to speak at the symposium because of her leadership as a Latina and her advocacy work to elevate the Latina community.
However, Alverio said she was worried that Huerta would cancel due to the news about United Farm Workers co-founder César Chavez and his alleged abuse that broke weeks prior.
“She had canceled quite a few appearances and I was not sure whether or not she was going to cancel Hartford,” Alverio said. So, Alverio asked why.
“[Huerta] said to me because I heard there were a lot of Latinas in Hartford, and I wanted to come see that,” Alverio said. “She wanted to know about us, and she wanted to encourage us to keep going… That really touched me.”
Alverio said many people reached out to her to thank her for bringing Huerta to Hartford.
“[Some said] ‘I feel that I am now a part of history to have even been in the same space,’” Alverio said, “and that is something that I feel.”
Alverio hopes to carry on Huerta’s legacy by creating a Dolores Huerta Award for people who do civil rights work.
“I think our organization is in position to do that, being that we were one of the last Latina organizations to have her on our stage,” Alverio said. “That is something I believe that we can and we will do.”
The spirit of service
“It was not unexpected because she was up in years, but it's always a sad occasion to lose such an icon,” said Connecticut artist, musician, and educator Carlos Hernández Chávez, “an unsung hero of the farm workers’ struggles in this country.”
In his experience as an organizer, Hernández Chávez said he has learned that it’s always women who actually do the hard and tedious work.
“She got her recognition much later than she should have,” he said. “I'm very comforted that she finally was given her due.”
Hernández Chávez has a photo of Huerta holding a book called ‘Elvira: A Mexican Immigrant Woman’ that his cousin, Eduardo Hernández Chávez wrote.
The cover of the book features Carlos Hernández Chávez’s mural from 2009 called ‘Sugar Beet Workers’. The mural is on display in Hartford City Hall.
“When I see [the photo], I get chills, literally chills, because I never thought that I would ever even meet her, never mind having her hold the image of my mural,” Hernández Chávez said.
The memoir tells the story of his aunt who is depicted in the mural. Hernández Chávez said he’s glad to have that photo given the work Huerta did for migrant farm-working families like his.
“The whole connection with the farm working history is the link that really puts me together with [Huerta] in some sort of way,” he said. “I feel that we were in the same family.”
Hernández Chávez said Huerta also embodies a value that his parents instilled in him.
“It is the spirit of service,” he said. “You're coming in your later life, like I am, and then you figure, you know, what's life about? And basically, I have come to the conclusion that, like Dolores, life is all about service.”
Beyond service, Hernández Chávez said he hopes people remember not only the struggles farm workers have faced, but also the importance of farming as an industry.
“It's important to remind people where their food comes from,” he said, “and to embrace the efforts of all the agricultural communities everywhere and to support it because that's what sustains us.”
¡Sí, se puede!
Make the Road Connecticut Executive Director Wendy Cárdenas shared that the organization’s members, who advocate for immigrant, Latinx, and working class communities, were heartbroken by the news of Huerta’s death.
“She showed us that when communities come together, organize, and refuse to give up, anything is possible,” Cárdenas said in a statement.
“Her courage and determination opened doors for so many of us,” she said, “especially women of color, to find our voices, become leaders, and continue the fight for justice.”
Cárdenas said the organization hopes to honor her legacy by continuing Huerta’s work in fighting for the rights of workers, women, and immigrant families.
“At Make the Road Connecticut, we carry her words, ‘¡Sí, se puede!’, with us everywhere we go,” she said. “We have chanted them at marches, shouted them at rallies, and held onto them through countless meetings, actions, and difficult moments.”
Those three words, Cárdenas said, are a reminder of the power to create change.
“¡Sí, se puede!” Cárdenas said. “We have, we can, and we will continue to.”
