RSS Feed
Print Story
E-mail Story
Martinez column: Kern woman true Latina of substance
| Wednesday, Jan 10 2007 10:20 PM
Last Updated: Wednesday, Jan 10 2007 10:25 PM
Last week, the magazine People en Español published an issue featuring its list of the 100 Most Influential Hispanics, and the cover story featured singer and sometime actress Jennifer Lopez. Bakersfield political activist Dolores Huerta made the list, but not the cover.
BAKERSFIELD.COM HOT TOPICS:
Loading Stories
Advertisement
I don't have anything against Lopez, but here's a little advice for People in Español: Next time, if you want to pick a Latina of substance who has dedicated her life to helping others and isn't driven by the desire for money or fame, put Huerta on your cover.
Most Kern County residents know Huerta helped Cesar Chavez found the United Farm Workers union, negotiated countless contracts for field laborers and continues to fight for social justice through the Dolores Huerta Foundation.
But here's something you may not know. Although the 76-year-old Huerta still won't back down from a fight, she is also an unassuming and approachable woman who isn't possessed by the monstrous ego of many public figures.
At Cal State Bakersfield in the early 1980s, I heard Huerta speak to a crowd of students who couldn't wait to conquer the world. But instead of telling them to earn their degree so they could get rich, Huerta invited everyone to volunteer for the Farm Worker Movement and help the poor fight for a better life. It was a countercultural message that is sorely needed, even today.
I bumped into Huerta several months ago, when death-penalty opponent Sister Helen Prejean -- featured in the movie "Dead Man Walking -- spoke at CSUB.
After the presentation, Huerta blended into the crowd as she waited quietly in line to get a book autographed by Prejean. The physically slight woman asked for no special treatment, and few seemed to recognize her. But when she got to the head of the line, Prejean did. The Catholic nun stood, beamed and hugged Huerta.
At one point, Huerta chatted with my family and me about the student immigration walkouts, then turned to my teenage daughter, Ramona, and asked, "What do you think?" How many national-level figures care what a teenage kid from east Bakersfield thinks unless the TV cameras are on?
About a year ago, I was working on a freelance article for Mas magazine about comedian George Lopez performing for a Huerta Foundation fundraiser. Although Lopez's handlers repeatedly promised me a telephone interview, they never came through.
As deadline loomed, I decided to refocus the story on Huerta. So I called her daughter, Lori DeLeon, and asked if it was remotely possible to get Huerta on the phone for just a few minutes on short notice.
DeLeon's response: "Are you ready?"
I'd spent the better of two weeks chasing the elusive Lopez in vain, but after just a few seconds of effort, I was talking to Huerta.
Yet in 50 years, who will have left the bigger mark on history, Huerta or an entertainer?
The folks at People en Español should ask themselves that question the next time they choose a person to represent the nation's most influential Latinos.
Leonel Martinez's column appears every other Thursday. Readers may send comments or suggestions to lmartinez @bakersfield.com or leave a voice mail at 395-7631.