Dolores Huerta: Building Coalitions to Affect Change

Street meeting at night in Mexican town outside of Shafter, California

Overview

Students explore the experiences of Mexican-American farmworkers in the United States and learn about how they – especially through the leadership of Dolores Huerta and the United Farm Workers – worked with others for improvements in pay and working conditions, as well as respect for their civil rights. Students analyze primary sources that document working and living conditions at different times in order to build context and then analyze additional sources that highlight the contributions of Dolores Huerta, including a poem written to celebrate her work. Finally, students write their own poem about a time they worked as part of a coalition to help solve a problem.

Related Resources

Grade

Middle School

Subjects

Civics, English Language Arts

Length

60-90 minutes

Topics

civil rights, coalitions, Dolores Huerta, huelga, labor, poetry, strike, UFW, union, United Farm Workers

Author

Citizen U CRF

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