Dolores Huerta, United Farm Workers co-founder and civil rights leader, dies at 96

Huerta died of cancer, the BBC reported. The UFW credits her with coining its rallying cry "Sí, se puede" ("Yes, we can"), and she helped lead the Delano grape strike and national grape boycott and negotiated early farmworker contracts, according to her foundation.

Her advocacy helped win passage of California's Agricultural Labor Relations Act of 1975, which gave farmworkers the right to organize, the foundation said. She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012. Earlier this year, Huerta said publicly that Chavez had sexually assaulted her in the 1960s. Former President Bill Clinton, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and the UFW paid tribute on Wednesday, the BBC reported.

Why it matters: Huerta's organizing over seven decades shaped labor protections for farmworkers and drew more Latinos and women into U.S. politics.