The Leadership Conference Stands With Farmworker Movement Survivors

Maya Wiley, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement:

In light of recent reports detailing allegations of sexual abuse within the farmworker movement, we acknowledge and respect the courage of survivors who have chosen to speak out. The Leadership Conference stands with every survivor who has shared their story and those who may still be finding the strength to do so.

Dolores Huerta has been a beacon of hope for farmworkers and a tireless builder of justice across the civil rights community. The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is proud to have honored her for that work with our prestigious Hubert Humphrey Award in 1997. She has been a personal inspiration for me as a woman in this movement and a light that shines with principled determination.

Her voice, alongside those who have come forward, must be met with the respect and care that she has always personified.

The farmworker movement belongs to the many people who have built and sustained it and continue to do so, particularly the women whose contributions have too often gone unrecognized.

As a civil rights community, we know our movements are stronger when survivors are respected, supported, and protected when they decide to speak out. We all must take seriously our responsibility to ensure the safety and accountability of all people in each and every workplace.

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 240 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.

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