Where Dolores Huerta lived, her legacy inspires activism in a new context

Bakersfield, Calif. | Oct. 29, 2026, 12:00 a.m. ET | 4 min read When Cecilia López Mora got news of the passing of iconic labor leader Dolores Huerta early Wednesday, she thought of the higher wages and protections she benefited from when she harvested grapes in the mid-1990s in her hometown of Wasco. “It’s because of her that I got paid more picking grapes,” she says in Spanish. “Dolores worked in the fields, just like me. She knew what it was like. She helped people like us… the farmworkers.”Mrs. López Mora retired earlier this year after more than two decades of working in the grape fields and later in packing houses. She says Mrs. Huerta’s memory gives her hope and strength to continue to fight for herself and others. Particularly at a time of upheaval in U.S. immigration policy that is affecting farm workers along with others. In recent days, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have made arrests and taken people away in her Wasco neighborhood. Mrs. Huerta, a pioneering labor activist and civil rights leader who cofounded the National Farm Workers Association in 1962 with César Chávez, died surrounded by her family in Bakersfield, California, according to a statement to the Monitor from family spokesperson Erik Olvera. Susan Montoya Bryan/APA collection of photographs, candles and flowers adorn an altar in honor of Dolores Huerta at Old Town Plaza in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026. Mrs. Huerta had remained politically active, organizing and protesting up until a few months ago against ICE operations that have swept through the San Joaquin Valley and across the state for the past couple of years. Federal officers’ immigration enforcement activity in the days and weeks leading up to the Nov. 3 election has drawn criticism for inducing fear in some communities.Bakersfield, at the southern end of the valley, is an agricultural and oil production hub. More than half of the population is Latino. California was one of nine states where a federal judge last week said the Department of Homeland Security should stop doing “elections-related field operations and field interviews” if officials suspect residents are U.S. citizens. Many farmworkers were already in the fields when news of Mrs. Huerta’s death began circulating early Wednesday. But in the evening, around 100 people holding candles gathered in downtown Bakersfield. Lori de Leon, one of Mrs. Huerta’s daughters, encouraged the crowd to go out and vote. “My mother always said voting is the most important day of your life.”“Don't be fearful. Take a stand. Help support immigrants,” she said. Court Mast/AP/FileUnited Farm Workers leader Dolores Huerta, center, leads a rally in San Francisco's Mission District on Nov. 19, 1988, along with Howard Wallace, president of the San Francisco chapter of the UFW, left, and Maria Elena Chavez, 16, the daughter of Cesar Chavez, right, as part of a national boycott of what the UFW claims is the dangerous use of pesticides on table grapes. Mrs. Huerta was key in laying the groundwork for what became the United Farm Workers. She played a central role in the 1965-1970 Delano grape strike, fought for collective bargaining, and coined the rallying cry “Sí, se puede,” or “Yes, we can.” Her organizing was instrumental in California’s Agricultural Labor Relations Act of 1975, which granted farmworkers the legal right to form unions, hold secret-ballot elections, and bargain collectively with their employers. In March – following a New York Times investigation into Mr. Chávez's sexual misconduct – Mrs. Huerta publicly stated that she had been sexually abused and raped by Mr. Chávez in the 1960s.On Wednesday, Audrey Chavez, co-owner of Martin's Meats and Deli in downtown Bakersfield, tended to a makeshift memorial for Mrs. Huerta next to her shop. She placed yellow flowers in a vase in front of a mural of Mrs. Huerta speaking into a bullhorn. The depiction of Mrs. Huerta is part of a larger mural that reads “Human kindness opens doors. All are welcome here.” Jorge Guillen, a local Chicano artist, is in the midst of finishing the mural. Cindy Carcamo/The Christian Science MonitorAudrey Chavez, co-owner of Martin's Meats and Deli, stands in front of a newly painted mural of Dolores Huerta next to her shop. She erected a makeshift memorial to Mrs. Huerta soon after hearing about her death Oct. 28, 2026. Mrs. Chavez and Mrs. Huerta were friends. Inside the deli, Mrs. Chavez displays a bullhorn that Mrs. Huerta signed for her last year. “I put it on this table today, just as a reminder of her life and her presence and her support and her voice and her call to action,” Mrs. Chavez says. In recent months, Mrs. Chavez has used the bullhorn to protest against increasing ICE actions in the Central Valley. “Dolores has really led a life of advocating for the vulnerable and underserved and those who are often misunderstood,” Mrs. Chavez says. “Her memory reminds people to really tap into our conscience as a nation and as human beings, to strive for a more equitable world.”Most people were at work as she spoke, including farmworkers laboring in the fields throughout Kern County, picking table grapes as the harvest wound down for the year. Deepen your worldviewwith Monitor Highlights.Politics with respectGet political stories with respectful analysis.There‘s a world of new ideas in everyBooks newsletter.There‘s more to life, enrich yours withCulture & Learning weekly.Follow humanity‘s discoveries withScience & Nature stories in your inbox.Gain a spiritual perspectivefrom the stories in your inbox.Want to understand the deeper impact of critical events? Learn the Monitor‘s insight.Already a subscriber? Log in to hide ads. Florentina Olvera, who harvested grapes in Delano and roses in Wasco for more than 20 years, says she organized with Mrs. Huerta. She greatly admired her drive and willingness to help other farmworkers, particularly women. “I remember a woman who taught me how to fight,” she says in Spanish. “She taught us how to fight for ourselves and others.” ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER? 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