Nationally acclaimed civil rights leader visits Louisville for movie release
LOUISVILLE, KY (WAVE) - She is known as a fighter for civil rights and has been recognized by several presidents through the decades.
Saturday, Dolores Huerta visited Louisville for the screening of a documentary about her life.
The film, "Dolores", was played at the Speed Art Museum.
Huerta is credited as the co-founder of the United Farm Workers and fighting for better working conditions. At the time, farm workers got paid as little as 70 cents an hour, according to the film.
Huerta was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Obama in 2012.
She is now 87.
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"I know that Kentucky is a beautiful state and we want it to be represented by beautiful people and that all of the beauty and all of the rights that people deserve, they need to be at the forefront of everything that you do," Huerta told WAVE 3 News.
The idea for the documentary came from music icon Carlos Santana.
An additional screening of the film will be held at the Speed Cinema on Sunday, January 7 from 3:00 p.m. to 4:40 p.m..
The film is playing in several other states including Massachusetts, New York, Washington and California. It was directed by Peter Bratt.
The event was co-presented with the ACLU-KY, Jefferson County Chapter of Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, Mijente Louisville and the UofL Cultural Center.
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