Labor advocates and Democratic lawmakers called on Americans to honor the legacy of the legendary union organizer Dolores Huerta, who died Wednesday at age 96, by “continuing to fight for her dream” of justice for all.

A spokesperson for Huerta’s family said she died of cancer, and her family members said they would share plans “to recognize and celebrate her incredible life and legacy” at a later date.

“We know that many of you around the world share in our mourning,” said her family, including her 13 children who survive her.

Huerta became a hero to workers across the world in the 1960s when she joined Cesar Chavez to establish the National Farm Workers Association, which became known as the United Farm Workers in 1972.

She helped lead a strike by Filipino workers in the grape-growing industry in Southern California, as well as boycotts of companies that paid migrant workers low wages, while exposing them to toxic chemicals and providing no job security.

Huerta faced violence by strikebreakers and police, 22 arrests for her nonviolent protests, and surveillance by the FBI, which suspected her and Chavez of Communist ties—but nevertheless organized one of the most successful produce boycotts in US history in 1968, garnering support from 17 million households and thousands of grocery stores that pledged not to purchase California table grapes due to growers’ abuse of workers.

Dolores Huerta has passed away from cancer at 96. She was a founder of what became the United Farm Workers and an inspiration for generations of organizers.

Her courageous leadership in civil disobedience set an invaluable example in nonviolence. Dolores’s memory will live on. https://t.co/BMnLgbI2XK

— Ro Khanna (@RoKhanna) October 28, 2026

The strike led by Huerta and Chavez also gained the backing of the United Auto Workers and Democratic Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, and the grape growers were forced to provide benefits to the workers the industry depended on.

“Through courage and determination, she helped change what the world saw as possible, who the world saw as deserving of rights and dignity. Every worker owes her a debt of gratitude,” said Sara Nelson, international president of the Association of Flight Attendants. “It’s a debt that we must pay forward by continuing to fight for her dream of a world where no human is exploited and no injustice is written off as someone else’s problem.”

Along with Huerta’s historic boots-on-the-ground victory for farmworkers, she pushed for the passage of one of the country’s first major farm-labor laws, the Agricultural Labor Relations Act in California, which was passed in 1975. The law gave the state’s farmworkers the right to organize unions and made them eligible for health insurance, pensions, and other benefits.

For those who pursue peace and justice around the world, we mourn the loss of Dolores Huerta. The strength of today’s labor movement would not be possible were it not for the decades-long work of Dolores. From the Delano Grape Strike of the 1960s until the very end of her life,… https://t.co/DsCq6CXLDe

— Chi Ossé (@OsseChi) October 28, 2026

She also pushed lawmakers to pass immigration reform in the 1980s and backed campaigns for voting rights, environmental justice, and LGBTQ+ rights. Her last arrest was in 2019, when she was rallying for fair pay for home health aides.

“Dolores Huerta gave us all of the empathy, care, and encouragement of a mother for workers everywhere, with a fierce love for people that fueled her principled, relentless, strategic action for results that lifted millions of workers and our families,” said Nelson. “She never gave up, she never gave in, and she fought for a better world to her last breath.”

Chavez was often viewed as the leader of the movement they led together, with Huerta serving as vice president of the United Farm Workers for nearly forty years.

But earlier this year, Huerta and other women in the movement revealed to The New York Times in a bombshell report that Chavez had sexually abused women and children as young as 12 for years.

Huerta accused Chavez of raping her at least twice in encounters that led to pregnancies. She said she did not report the assaults to police because they were hostile to their labor organizing, and said she had not been aware of his alleged abuse of minors.

“Unfortunately, he used some of his great leadership to abuse women and children,” Huerta told the Times. “I never talked about it to anybody, and the reason I didn’t is because I just didn’t want to hurt the movement.”

Huerta remained with the United Farm Workers until 1999. Three years later she established the Dolores Huerta Foundation, which leads grassroots organizing efforts to promote education equity, LGBTQ+ equality, and other causes.

She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012 by President Barack Obama, who acknowledged at the ceremony that the rallying cry he adopted in 2008, “Sí se puede” (“Yes we can”), had originated with Huerta.

“¡Sí, se puede! is more than a chant,” said Melat Kiros, a progressive Democratic US House candidate in Colorado. “It’s a promise we must keep in her honor: that the people united can change the world.”

Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro arrived in the United States on Tuesday, according to Mexican lawyer Simón Levy, who describes himself as a liaison to President Donald Trump’s MAGA movement. In a post on X made at 3:20 p.m., Levy said the failed presidential candidate had landed safely and credited U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio with orchestrating the operation.

As of the time this information was provided, the U.S. government, Brazil’s Foreign Ministry and the Federal Police had not officially confirmed his arrival. Brazilian authorities also had no formal record of the senator leaving the country.

“As I reported hours ago, Flávio Bolsonaro has arrived safely in United States. The mastermind behind this operation is U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. From the United States, free and safe, Flávio will lead the opposition against Lula,” Levy wrote on X.

The trip came after Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered Bolsonaro’s passport seized. According to reports, he fled Brazil overnight, accompanied by his family, with help from a small group of allies from both Brazil and the United States. The Federal Police found no record of him passing through a regular immigration checkpoint.

Bolsonaro’s legal team said their last contact with him was at 4:30 p.m. on Monday. Reports in the Argentine press mentioned a possible border crossing and a jet that reportedly reached Puerto Iguazú but never took off. The exact circumstances of his departure have not been officially confirmed.

Bolsonaro Said He Would Stay in Brazil, Then Fled the Next Day

Bolsonaro had said he would hand over his passport to the Federal Police and would not leave the country over the election results. That is not what happened.

Who Is Simón Levy

Simón Levy is a Mexican lawyer and businessman who presents himself as connected to the MAGA movement. He previously served in the government of Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

Levy had already said on social media that Bolsonaro was en route to the United States. He later announced the senator’s arrival and said Rubio was responsible for orchestrating it. In another post, he said a U.S. protection operation was underway to ensure the lawmaker’s safety.

Levy’s statements, however, have not been confirmed by U.S. officials. His claim of proximity to Trump’s political circle does not, on its own, prove that the U.S. government formally participated in Bolsonaro’s departure or his reception in the United States.

What Is Operation Alba

Operation Alba is a name Levy uses to describe an alleged political strategy involving Bolsonaro and U.S. activity in Latin America. According to Levy, the senator will lead opposition to President Lula da Silva’s government from within the United States.

In Levy’s account, the effort is tied to pressure from Washington on Venezuela, Cuba and Mexico, including economic measures. Levy also credited Rubio with orchestrating the operation. Levy has written about Operation Alba on his website.

Asylum Request or Fugitive From Justice?

Allies of Bolsonaro say he plans to request political asylum from President Trump. According to these accounts, that protection could extend to his wife and two daughters. The reported favorable signal from the U.S. government has also not been officially confirmed.

In Brazil, the Federal Police canceled both Bolsonaro’s regular and diplomatic passports. Workers’ Party (PT) lawmakers have requested his pretrial detention and asked that his name be added to an Interpol Red Notice. The Socialism and Freedom Party (PSOL), meanwhile, has asked the Senate to investigate whether he has abandoned his elected position.

His departure also upends the political plans attributed to him. Allies had said he intended to lead opposition to Lula’s government in Congress. With his trip to the United States, that strategy is now on hold, according to these accounts.

This article originally ran in the Brazilian labor union news portal TVT News, was translated with express authorization of the editor by Panamerican Dispatch, and can be read in its original Portuguese here.