Topic > Dolores Huerta: The Life and Times of a Mexican American Political Activist

Dolores Huerta is a Mexican-American political activist born on April 10, 1930 in northern New Mexico ("Dolores Huerta" 2013). As a young woman living in the mid-20th century, she was given a very rigid role, particularly being of Mexican descent. Nonetheless, inspired by her generous and highly independent mother, Huerta continued her education through high school and college, earning a teaching certificate. While teaching, she became aware of the economic injustices in her community and was determined to take action to correct them. She is best known for her fight for farm workers' rights primarily in the 1960s and 1970s, although she continues her activism today. (Garcia 1993) Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essayHuerta was an important figure in gaining workers' rights, helping her organizations achieve significant victories despite her status as a Latina woman, something that meant she was taken seriously in the challenging world of work during this time . She is often said to be the unsung heroine of this movement, as her colleague Cesar Chavez is much more often recognized for his work. (“National Portrait” 2015) In 1955 he began his career at the Stockton Community Service Organization, hoping to help the poor as he had desired. During her time there, she helped organize events to register voters and fought for better working and living conditions for migrant workers. (Garcia 1993) After working for the CSO, Huerta met Cesar Chavez who had similar views to hers on how best to give agricultural workers the rights they deserved. Their ideas did not agree with the CSO's methods, so they resigned and went on to co-found the National Farm Workers Association. They were incredibly successful, Huerta used her skills and education to become a strong lobbyist and contract negotiator for the NFWA. Although their organization had little economic power, grassroots campaign methods allowed them to gain much-needed leverage through boycotts and strategic voting. His first major achievement in this field came in 1963 by providing farm workers with disability insurance and aid for non-self-sufficient families, representing a major step toward remedying the poverty he saw among the working class. One of Huerta and the Association's greatest successes was obtaining the first-ever act giving workers the right to organize and defend their conditions, called the Agricultural Labor Relations Act of 1975. This essentially allowed them to accomplish their dream of organizing the workers they were. claiming what their goal was in founding the NFWA. (“Dolores Huerta” 2013) Throughout her career, Huerta has always affirmed her belief that women had a vital role in activism and has never considered her gender as something that stood between her and her work . After her successes in the NFWA, Huerta began to focus her efforts on feminist activities as well (Garcia 1993). She campaigned to encourage more Latina women to run for political positions, leading to a notable increase in the number of women involved in politics. She also held a position in the 21st Century Party, which advocated for true representation of gender and racial diversity in political office. Today, Huerta continues to educate and advocate for workers, especially the working poor, and women's rights..