Labor leader Dolores Huerta spoke out on Wednesday with allegations that civil rights and labor icon César Chávez had abused and raped her decades ago, leading to two pregnancies and children she gave up for adoption.
Huerta broke her silence after an explosive New York Times report revealed civil rights and labor icon César Chávez had sexually abused girls and women, Axios reported.
"I have encouraged people to always use their voice. Following the New York Times’ multi-year investigation into sexual misconduct by César Chávez, I can no longer stay silent and must share my own experiences," Huerta, who co-founded the United Farm Workers union with Chávez, wrote in a statement shared on her social media and published on Medium.
"As a young mother in the 1960s, I experienced two separate sexual encounters with César," she added. "The first time I was manipulated and pressured into having sex with him, and I didn’t feel I could say no because he was someone that I admired, my boss and the leader of the movement I had already devoted years of my life to. The second time I was forced, against my will, and in an environment where I felt trapped."
"I had experienced abuse and sexual violence before, and I convinced myself these were incidents that I had to endure alone and in secret. Both sexual encounters with César led to pregnancies. I chose to keep my pregnancies secret and, after the children were born, I arranged for them to be raised by other families that could give them stable lives.”