Dolores Huerta, a civil rights icon who founded United Farm Workers with César Chávez in the 1960s, revealed more personal details Thursday about her allegations of sex assaults by Chávez and explained why she stayed silents for decades.
In a interview with Latino USA, a public radio program focused on Latino communities and issues, Huerta said she feared speaking out about Chávez would damage the union and the workers rights movement that she and Chávez spearheaded.
“It was my personal pain. It was my personal problem,” she said. “And, you know, I think it was worth it because it was my cross to bear.”
Huerta said after two other women came forward in a New York Times investigation, describing alleged sexual abuse by Chávez when they were teenagers, she could no longer stay silent.
“I really applaud them so much because i think their courage has given me the courage also to be able to come out,” Huerta said. “In many stances, they will want to blame the girls. Some people will try to blame me.”
Her decision to stay until now to speak up has indeed sparked some backlash, with some wondering whether anyone else knew about the alleged assaults. But in the Latino USA interview, Huerta said she doesn’t believe anyone was aware.
“I cannot think of any single person that may have known or should have known,” she said. “I can’t think of any one person in my mind that I knew of or ever said anything to me about what he was doing.”
Huerta explained when the assaults happened, she felt as though she had no one to turn to. She also said she never confronted Chávez.
“God knows, had I done that, maybe in some way, it would have prevented other women and girls,” she said.
Huerta also said she was able to hide her pregnancies caused by Chávez because she didn’t get “very big,” adding that she now maintains a close relationship with the two children born out of the rape.
Despite the controversy, Huerta pledged the movement will continue.
“We are resilient people. And we’re not going to let anything stop our progress that we’re going to continue to go forward until we get the respect the equity that our community, especially women, deserves,” Huerta said.