“Colorado, you have always been in the forefront of the civil rights struggle. I’m glad to see that you are taking your place again right in the front lines," Huerta said.
Before speaking at the Capitol, Huerta delivered the keynote address at the Grand Hyatt in downtown Denver for Latino Advocacy Day, an event when activists lobby at the Capitol on behalf of Latino communities. Latino Advocacy Day is organized by Voces Unidas de las Montañas, a nonpartisan organization, and the Colorado Organization for Latina Opportunity and Reproductive Rights (COLOR).
After speaking at the Grand Hyatt, Huerta joined a "Stand Up With Immigrants" march, as it was called by Latino Advocacy Day organizers, which took her to the Capitol's west steps and, according to state patrol estimates, an audience of upwards of 200 people.
Huerta is best known for organizing the United Farm Workers in 1962 alongside Cesar Chavez, standing up for migrant farm workers. Though her movement was largely centered in California, Huerta and Chavez helped spur Chicano movements around the country, including the Crusade for Justice founded in Denver in 1967 by Rodolfo "Corky" Gonzales. She's also known for coining the rallying cry "Si Se Puede," which was later used during the Barack Obama 2008 presidential campaign as the loosely translated "Yes We Can."
Huerta's audience at the Capitol broke out into chants of "Si Se Puede" and other chants in Spanish throughout the event. People also waved Mexican flags and held signs reading "ICE Fuera" or "Get Out ICE," referring to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the federal agency that deports immigrants.
Huerta has come to Denver several times over the last decade, including in 2020 to encourage Latino immigrants to participate in the U.S. Census and in 2017 for a Mayan Theater screening of Huerta, a documentary about her activism. Her March 17 visit was to "fight for good legislation that will protect our people, that will protect our women, that will protect our children, that will protect our elders," she said before heading inside to speak to state legislators.
In particular, Huerta endorsed House Bill 25-1244, which would require community-based organizations that receive certain state grants to make sure migrants are prioritized for services.
She also applauded how actively Coloradans have been rallying against Trump's policies and rhetoric. Protests have taken place almost weekly since Trump has been back in office; some of the events are in solidarity with national movementsm and a handful have attracted thousands of protesters to the State Capitol.
"What you're doing here is actually an inspiration and an example of what we need to do all over the United States of America," Huerta said. "There are many, many thousands of us here in Colorado and throughout the United States that will continue organizing to make sure we have a democracy."
"What you're doing here is actually an inspiration and an example of what we need to do all over the United States of America," Huerta said. "There are many, many thousands of us here in Colorado and throughout the United States that will continue organizing to make sure we have a democracy."
Huerta said that the Trump administration has already hurt families with deportations and with his massive downsizing of the federal workforce, both of which have affected Coloradans in recent weeks.
"How many people have already been hurt? How many people have been deported? How many families have been affected?" Huerta said. "All of the cuts they've been making right now, can you imagine someone getting a notice [saying] 'you don't have your job anymore.' We have to show them how Colorado fights for democracy."
"How many people have already been hurt? How many people have been deported? How many families have been affected?" Huerta said. "All of the cuts they've been making right now, can you imagine someone getting a notice [saying] 'you don't have your job anymore.' We have to show them how Colorado fights for democracy."
Huerta called for boycotting stores, contacting lawmakers and organizing more protests and rallies to keep up the pressure on billionaires, corporations and President Trump.
Bennito L. Kelty
Referring to Trump as "menso," a Spanish word that means boneheaded or stupid, she said, "We're going to let him know that we're not buying his line...we didn't want kings from England. We didn't want kings from Spain. This is a democracy."
Huerta encouraged Coloradans to continue their activism by bringing rallies against Trump to cities and towns all over Colorado and by contacting state and federal lawmakers to let them know what issues matter.
"Send some emails, make some phone calls, send some letters and postcards to let them know we are watching them," Huerta said. "We want to make sure they're accountable...that is what democracy is all about."
Billionaires need to hear it, too, according to Huerta. During her speech, she called for "economic fasting" or not buying from certain stores, like Target and McDonald's, saying, "Go somewhere else and buy whatever you need so they can feel the pain. You don't want all those billionaires who want our tax money. Where they feel their pain is in their wallets.
"We need to have our people included, people of color, women, the LGBTQ community. We need to be included. We're fighting for equity for everybody," she continued.
Daniela Alvarado, a first-generation Latina immigrant, attended Huerta's speech. "Seeing her and learning from her and that the struggle is still happening is insane," she said.
"One of the key things that she said is that every time there's a dark time, something new and some good happens from that," Alvarado told Westword. "There are people who are making laws that go after our community, so that really resonated with me."
Jorge Galdamez, an El Salvadorean immigrant who moved to the U.S. more than twenty years ago when he was six years old, said that since Trump took office, "It's the only time I've really felt in danger of me being snatched" and deported. Seeing Huerta continue to march and deliver speeches at 93 years old inspires him, however.
"It's really powerful to see her in her older years still fighting," he said. "It really fires me up and gives me motivation to get out there and keep fighting."
