Statement by Sal Rosselli, National Union of Healthcare Workers President Emeritus, on the passing of Dolores Huerta
The following statement is from Sal Rosselli, a longtime friend of Dolores Huerta’s and the president emeritus of NUHW, which named Huerta its first honorary member in 2018 and gave her its inaugural Courage Award in 2025.
Dolores Huerta was an icon whose life’s work uplifted millions of people and empowered them to build lives that would have otherwise been unimaginable. She was also a dear friend for more than 40 years, a staunch advocate for healthcare justice, and a guardian angel to our union and its members.
Dolores understood that a union is not just about winning contracts; it’s about bringing people together to demand dignity and respect in their workplace, and justice for everyone. Dolores represented the highest principles of the labor movement: worker democracy and empowerment, and she fought for them every day of her life.
In 2009, when NUHW was in its infancy, Dolores, at the age of 79, joined our organizers inside the cafeteria of Kaiser’s Modesto medical center, urging workers to join us so they could once again have real power in their union. Last year, when our members at Kaiser launched a 5-day hunger strike in the midst of what became the longest strike by mental health workers in U.S. history, Dolores traveled from Bakersfield to Los Angeles to let them know she understood they were sacrificing for their patients, just like she had sacrificed for so many people. Her presence helped our members feel a renewed faith in their fight and understand that – just like her – they were on the right side of history.
I’ll never know anyone again with such inner strength and unwavering conviction to always walk the talk of justice.
