Labor leader, Civil Rights worker, and former teacher Dolores Huerta dedicated her life to helping improve the lives of migrant farm workers. She passed away today at the age of 96.
The nation woke up to some very sad news today. Dolores Huerta had passed away at her home in Bakersfield. She was 96.
Like many people around the country, I have heard of the formidable labor leader and Civil Rights worker ever since I was a child in the 1960’s, and my mother declared to the family that we would support the labor strike launched by the United Farmworkers. That year, and for many years after, Dolores worked tirelessly to secure better working conditions for migrant farm workers. But did you know she was also once a teacher?
Dolores was born in Dawson, New Mexico, on April 10, 1930. Raised in Stockton, California, she graduated in 1955 with an AA and her teaching credentials from the College of the Pacific. After her college graduation, she accepted a teaching position in a rural Stockton elementary school. She had been teaching for only a short time when she realized she wanted to devote her energy to migrant farm workers and their families. “I couldn’t stand seeing farm worker children come to class hungry and in need of shoes,” she once explained. “I thought I could do more by organizing their parents than by trying to teach their hungry children.”
After just one year, Dolores resigned from her teaching position, determined to launch a campaign that would fight the numerous economic injustices faced by migrant agricultural workers. Joining forces with the legendary labor leader Cesar Chavez, the intrepid educator helped organize a large-scale strike against the commercial grape growers of the San Joaquin Valley, an effort which raised national awareness of the abysmal treatment of America’s agricultural workers. She also negotiated contracts which led to their improved working conditions. The rest, as they say, is history.
Although there are several fairly good juvenile biographies of this extraordinary woman, there is no definitive adult biography about her. The closest thing to it is A Dolores Huerta Reader edited by Mario T. Garcia. This book includes an informative biographical introduction by the editor, articles and book excerpts written about her, her own writings, transcripts of her speeches, and an interview with Mario Garcia. You can find A Dolores Huerta Reader on amazon. I have also included a chapter about this remarkable teacher in my second book, entitled Chalkboard Heroes.
Rest in peace, Dolores. Your fellow educators will miss you.
