PARK CITY, Utah _ At 86, Dolores Huerta has been working as a civil rights activist for over six decades. But if you think she's ready to put down her bullhorn and hit the links, you've got it all wrong.
"All this work that has to be done," said Huerta, who co-founded what would go on to become the United Farm Workers, "as long as I have health and energy, I'm just gonna keep on doing it."
Dressed in a Hillary Clinton-esque cherry red dress suit, the octogenarian was making her way through the snow Friday morning, hours before a documentary about her life _ simply titled "Dolores" _ was set to premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. On Saturday, Huerta will speak at the local Women's March being led by Chelsea Handler, though she said she has yet to plan her remarks.
"I usually am very spontaneous," she said, adding that she was initially slated to speak at the march in D.C. before "Dolores" was accepted into the festival. "I try not to repeat what other speakers are saying so I don't get redundant. I want to feel what the appropriate message will be at that moment."
Participating in the march is particularly important to the Bakersfield resident, who feels "organizing at the grassroots level is the key to everything, basically." If the new administration makes good on its plans to defund Planned Parenthood and the Affordable Care Act, there will be even more reason to protest, she said.
"I think most of us in the progressive world feel very threatened right now," said Huerta, who opted not to watch the inauguration. "And I think all of us are hoping that somehow we will be able to reach (Donald Trump's) heart. Once he's in that position, maybe he will start getting some consciousness and some compassion. I hope he sees all of these protests across the country as a message and not just a criticism."
