Labor icon Cesar Chavez sexually assaulted female followers as young as 12 in the 1970s, and raped United Farm Workers co-founder Dolores Huerta, now 95, in 1966, according to an explosive New York Times investigation released Wednesday.
The story was published one day after the UFW and the Cesar Chavez Foundation announced that they will abstain from honoring the late labor leader on this year’s state holiday on March 31, citing “disturbing allegations.”
The Times said its story was based on interviews with more than 60 people, including top Chavez aides at the time, and also his relatives and former members of the UFW.
The story quotes a woman who says Chavez took her into his office when he was 45 and she was 13, kissed her and pulled her pants down. She said dozens of sexual encounters followed over the next four years, though she says none involved intercourse.
Another woman says she was 12 when Chavez groped her breast, and 15 when he arranged to have her stay at a motel during a march through California and had sexual intercourse with her.
Both women were the daughters of organizers who had marched in rallies alongside Chavez, according to the Times. The story claims that Chavez used other women in the farm labor movement for “sexual gratification.”
The Times said accounts of alleged abuse of the two then-minors were independently verified through interviews with those they confided in decades ago and also in more recent years. Elements of their stories were also corroborated in documents, emails, itineraries and other writings from union organizers, supporters of Chavez and historians, the story says.
Huerta, who will turn 96 on April 10, told the newspaper that Chavez drove her to a secluded grape field in Delano, California, in 1966 and raped her in the vehicle. She said she never reported the attack out of concerns for police hostility toward Chavez and the labor movement, and because she feared she wouldn’t be believed.
Huerta confirmed the account in a statement Wednesday, saying she had two sexual encounters with Chavez — the first of which involved her being “manipulated and pressured into having sex with him” — and the other in which she “was forced against my will.”
“I had experienced abuse and sexual violence before, and I convinced myself these were incidents that I had to ensure alone and in secret,” Huerta said. “Both sexual encounters with Ceasar 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.”
Chavez’s family issued a statement Wednesday saying they were “devastated” by the revelations.
“This is deeply painful for our family,” the statement read. “We wish peace and healing to the survivors and commend their courage to come forward. As a family steeped in the values of equity and justice, we honor the voices of those who feel unheard and who report sexual abuse.
“We carry our own memories of the person we knew. Someone whose life included work and contributions that matter deeply to many people. We remain committed to farmworkers and the causes he and countless others championed and continue to champion. We ask for understanding and privacy as we continue to process this difficult information.”
The charges came as a shock to admirers of Chavez, long considered one of the leading American civil rights figures of the 20th century, and a Latino icon.
“I am horrified by the abuse that we now know Dolores Huerta and other women suffered, but I’m moved by their incredible courage in telling their stories publicly all these years later,” Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn said in a statement Wednesday morning. “What matters most now is that we listen and support them as well as any other woman who suffered this abuse.
“For those of us who grew up admiring the farmworker movement, today’s news is heartbreaking. But as in any other civil rights movement, men were only half the story. The abuses of one man will never diminish the extraordinary sacrifices, accomplishments, and legacy of the women of the farmworker movement. It’s time we put them first.
“I think it’s time to change the name of our March public holiday to `Farmworker Day’ in Los Angeles County.”
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass issued a statement in support of Huerta and other women who came forward, saying what they endured “is not isolated, nor is it of the past.”
“Real progress requires more than moments of reckoning — it demands sustained action to dismantle social, cultural, economic, and political structures that have hurt women throughout our history,” Bass said. “Dolores and leaders like her inspired so many of us to activism. Mr. Chavez’s crimes do not diminish the courage of farm workers and workers everywhere who fight for their rights, equality for Latinos, and a stronger nation for everyone.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom said, “The farm workers movement and a labor movement are much bigger than one man.”
He said he and his wife “stand with the courageous women, like Dolores Huerta, who have stepped forward after decades of concealing pain and abuse. We’re for justice. We’re for truth. We’re for transparency. And we will have the backs of these survivors.”
Sen. Alex Padilla, D-California, called the allegations “heartbreaking” and “horrific.”
“I stand with the survivors, commend them for their bravery in sharing their stories, and condemn the abhorrent actions they described,” Padilla said in a statement. “The survivors deserve to be heard. They deserve to be supported. They deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. There must be zero tolerance for abuse, exploitation, and the silencing of victims, no matter who is involved. Confronting painful truths and ensuring accountability is essential to honoring the very values the greater farm worker movement stands for — values rooted in dignity and justice for all.”
The Los Angeles County Federation of Labor issued a statement saying the revelations are “deeply troubling and painful, particularly for those who have long looked to the labor movement’s history for inspiration and strength.”
“The labor movement has never been about one individual,” according to the federation. “It has always been, and must continue to be, about the collective power of working people coming together to demand dignity, fairness, and justice. Our mission is to uplift workers, protect their rights, and ensure that every workplace is safe, equitable, and free from harm.
“We remain steadfast in our commitment to those principles. We will continue to fight for safe working environments, fair wages, and the benefits that all workers deserve — while holding ourselves and our movement to the highest standards of integrity and respect.”
The League of United Latin American Citizens said it “unequivocally condemns any form of sexual violence against women and minors and strongly denounces the actions alleged involving the late Cesar Chavez. No individual, regardless of stature or legacy, is above accountability when it comes to protecting and upholding the dignity of others. LULAC stands with all victims of sexual abuse and affirms that no one has the right to exploit or harm children or women under any circumstances. We extend our deepest concern and solidarity to those who have suffered.
“The actions of one person neither reflect nor diminish the integrity of the farmworker movement. LULAC remains unchanged in its support of the farmworker movement and the countless men and women who, for generations, have labored in the fields, often unseen and unheard, to sustain their families and feed this nation.”
On Tuesday, the UFW and the Cesar Chavez Foundation issued separate but related statements stating that they will not organize or participate in events celebrating Cesar Chavez Day, which is typically observed on the same day as his birthday.
The UFW encouraged supporters to instead participate in immigration justice events and acts of service to support farmworkers or empower vulnerable people in their communities.
The union said it learned of allegations that Chavez behaved in ways that are incompatible with the organization’s values.
“Some of the reports are family issues, and not our story to tell or our place to comment on. Far more troubling are allegations involving abuse of young women or minors,” the UFW said in a statement. “Allegations that very young women or girls may have been victimized are crushing. We have not received any direct reports, and we do not have any firsthand knowledge of these allegations. However, the allegations are serious enough that we feel compelled to take urgent steps to learn more and provide space for people who may have been victimized to find support and to share their stories if that is what they choose.”
The Cesar Chavez foundation echoed those sentiments, adding its members are “deeply shocked and saddened by what we are hearing.”
Both organizations said they are developing a “safe and confidential process” for individuals to share their experiences of possible harm, and if they choose to, participate in efforts toward repair and reconciliation.
“In addition, we are investing time and resources to ensure the Foundation promotes and strengthens a workplace culture that is safe and welcoming for all,” the Foundation said in its statement. “We ask for our community’s patience as we learn more. Throughout this process, our organization and our partners in the movement will continue our work together to protect and uplift the families and communities that we serve.”
The UFW added it will take time to get the process right, which is expected to include trauma-informed services to those who may need it.
“We understand this will be tremendously painful for many and we encourage our community to seek mental health support if they experience distress,” UFW officials said. “Today’s UFW is a modern and progressive labor union and we will seek to learn from our history.”
Chavez died in 1993 at age 66.
In 2025, Los Angeles commemorated Cesar Chavez Day with a march and rally in Pacoima and a Mass at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, among other events throughout the region.
The Mass served to reflect on the 60th anniversary of the famed Delano Grape Strike. The strike by the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee, a predominantly Filipino and AFL-CIO-backed labor organization, against table grape growers in the Kern County city about 30 miles north of Bakersfield began on Sept. 8, 1965.
The predominantly Mexican National Farmworkers Association, which Chavez founded alongside Huerta, joined the strike eight days later. The two groups merged in August 1966 to create United Farm Workers.
The strike and boycott ended in 1970 after 26 table grape growers signed contracts with UFW.