Senator Smallwood-Cuevas Release Statement on the Passing of Labor and Civil Rights Champion Dolores Huerta

Senator Lola Smallwood-Cuevas today released the following statement on the passing of iconic labor and civil rights leader Dolores Huerta:

“I am deeply saddened by the passing of my dear friend and mentor, Dolores Huerta—a legendary civil rights leader, labor organizer, and fearless fighter for working people. Dolores didn’t just talk about justice. She put her life on the line for it.

“As a single mother, she left a stable teaching career to organize farmworkers. In 1965, she helped lead the historic Delano grape strike, fighting for higher wages, health benefits, and protections against dangerous pesticides. Jailed more than 20 times, she never stopped fighting.

“As a longtime organizer and Chair of the Senate Labor Committee, I know her fight is far from over. Every worker deserves fair wages, safe working conditions, quality health care, and dignity. We must carry that fight forward.

“To me, Dolores was more than an icon. She was a true organizer who always had an encouraging word and reminded us to keep fighting.

“I first met her on the march lines as an organizer with SEIU Local 1877, Justice for Janitors, fighting for dignity and a contract. Years later, as founding director of the LA Black Worker Center, I learned from her again at a leadership retreat, where she shared lessons of resilience with women of color leading in the labor movement.

“During the height of Black Lives Matter, I watched her connect the fight against mass incarceration with the farmworkers’ movement following a prison activism discussion at the UCLA Center for Justice. Even late into the night, she stayed until every student got an autograph or photo. That was Dolores—always organizing, always making time for people.

“One of my fondest memories was one of her last visits to the Capitol, just last year. We sat holding hands after she walked onto the Senate floor to hold us accountable for a vote on an immigrant rights bill. We talked about the difficulty of moving progressive issues in the California Legislature. Before we parted, she thanked me for stepping from organizing into the political arena. Her humility and kindness taught me yet another lesson.
 

“Dolores showed us what courage, humility and accountability look like. Her legacy lives on in every worker she empowered and every organizer she inspired.”
 

Senator Lola Smallwood-Cuevas represents the 28^th Senate District, which includes the communities of South Los Angeles, Mid City, Culver City, West Los Angeles, Century City and Downtown Los Angeles. Senator Smallwood-Cuevas spent more than two decades serving as a worker rights and racial equity advocate before her election to the State Senate. She resides in the View Park community of South Los Angeles with her family.

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