Secret pregnancies, paedophilia and more: 7 shocking revelations from US civil rights icon Cesar Chavez 'serial rape' and abuse probe

US civil rights icon Cesar Chavez's saintly image on Wednesday (Mar 18) was obliterated by shocking allegations of child abuse and serial rape. A bombshell investigation by The New York Times uncovered allegations against the American labour icon who died in 1993. At the centre of the report is 96-year-old Dolores Huerta, one of the most influential labour activists of the 20th century. Breaking a 60-year silence, Huerta accused Chavez of manipulating and raping her and revealed for the first time that he fathered two of her children through "forced" encounters. Here's what we know about Huerta's allegations against Chavez and the children born out of the sexual abuse.

Starting in the 1950s, he organised largely Latino farmworkers in California, leading strikes and boycotts that forced changes in wages and working conditions. His work earned him national recognition and, over time, near iconic status.

He was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Bill Clinton. Years later, Joe Biden placed a bust of Chavez in the Oval Office. California marks March 31 as Cesar Chavez Day. Chávez died in 1993, aged 66, of natural causes.

Dolores Huerta, a civil rights icon in her own right and the co-founder of the United Farm Workers (UFW), revealed that Chavez manipulated her to have sex with him in one instance and raped her in his car in another.

Huerta, now 96, said that both instances resulted in pregnancies. She said she stayed silent for decades. Not because the memory faded, but because she feared what speaking out might do to the movement she had spent her life building.

"I am nearly 96 years old, and for the last 60 years have kept a secret because I believed that exposing the truth would hurt the farmworker movement I have spent my entire life fighting for," she wrote in a statement she released on Medium on Wednesday.

"I have encouraged people to always use their voice. Following the New York Times’ multi-year investigation into sexual misconduct by Cesar Chavez, I can no longer stay silent and must share my own experiences," she said.

Huerta described two encounters in the 1960s. The first, she said, came under pressure she felt she could not resist. The second, she described as forced.

"The first time I was manipulated and pressured into having sex with him, and I didn’t feel I could say no because he was someone that I admired, my boss and the leader of the movement I had already devoted years of my life to. The second time I was forced, against my will, and in an environment where I felt trapped," she said.

Both sexual encounters resulted in pregnancies, said Huerta. She said she concealed the pregnancies and arranged for the children to be raised by other families. The United Farm Workers (UFW) co-founder said that she has developed a "deep relationship" with the two children born out of abuse.

"But even then, no one knew the full truth about how they were conceived until just a few weeks ago," she noted.

Two other women, daughters of members of the United Farm Workers, told the newspaper they were abused as minors in the 1970s.

Ana Murguia said Chavez began touching her inappropriately when she was 12. Debra Rojas alleged the abuse began at 13 and included sexual intercourse at 15, which under California law constitutes rape.

"The knowledge that he hurt young girls sickens me," said Huerta, adding that she decided to share her story after realising that Chavez's abuse was widespread.

"My heart aches for everyone who suffered alone and in silence for years. There are no words strong enough to condemn those deplorable actions that he did. Cesar’s actions do not reflect the values of our community and our movement."

She stated that she had kept this secret long enough, adding, "My silence ends here".