Dolores Huerta, the pioneering labor leader, civil rights activist, and feminist who devoted her life to advancing equality and justice, has died at the age of 96. Her groundbreaking work reshaped the labor and feminist movements, leaving an enduring legacy of grassroots organizing, women’s leadership, and collective action that continues to inspire generations.
Huerta was a dear friend and ally of the Feminist Majority Foundation since its founding. She served on the organization’s board for more than 30 years, offering her passion, energy, and visionary leadership to the fight for gender equality.
In the 1980s, Feminist Majority co-founders Eleanor Smeal and Kathy Spillar recruited Huerta to join the Feminization of Power campaign to increase women’s representation in elected office. For four years, Huerta traveled across the country with the Feminist Majority. She mentored women running for office, particularly Latinas and other women of color, and helped them secure endorsements while campaigning alongside them.
Reflecting on their work together, Smeal recalled, “We traveled to 8 states and she was determined to change the composition of California’s state legislature — and she did. When we started the campaign in 1987, the state legislature was only 14.2% women, but because of Dolores, it quickly jumped to 24.2%. And today, the California legislature is 49.2% women.” Now, in Congress, women are 42% of congressional Democrats, getting closer and closer to parity every year.
Spillar added in her memories of the tour with Huerta, “We would gather women active in their communities in their living rooms and talk about the need for more women to run for office. Dolores would always say to them ‘if you can’t recruit someone, then one of you has to step forward and run.’”
Huerta’s tireless organizing helped build momentum for a historic increase in women’s political representation, culminating in the 1992 election widely known as the “Year of the Woman.”
Smeal continued, “She would just keep going, it didn’t matter if it was midnight or 2am. She was my kind of person and we would just stay up all night strategizing. She worked day in and day out for women’s rights, labor rights, civil rights, LGBTQ rights, environmentalism — she was a leader in all the key issues. Her passion was infectious and inspiring.”
Smeal remembers a conversation with Huerta about the lasting impact of their activism. Huerta told her, “Our daughters can have a very different life than us because of the work we did.” Her work will live on in the movements she helped build and the generations who will carry her legacy forward.