The women behind their powerful husbands, standing beside the podium in support are often overlooked, but when heard -- they have some of the most powerful voices, thoughts and ideas that should be shared with the world.

Helen Chávez, a first generation Mexican-American, former labor activist for the United Farm Workers of America and wife of Mexican-American -- who best became known as a Latino Civil Rights activist -- César Chávez, turns 86 today. And like this unsung hero, good people who do amazing work should always be celebrated -- even if they weren't directly in the limelight per say.

"In addition to being César Chávez's partner and wife, Helen Chávez was always her husband's closest and best supporter. Helen and César together made the decision to give up their secure, middle-class life and in 1962 move their family of eight small children from East Los Angeles to Delano to begin what would become the United Farm Workers of America," according to the UFW.

"Quiet and humble but fiercely determined and strong willed, Helen didn't speak much, but she held deep convictions. In September 1965, while leaders of César's young Latino union debated whether or not to join a grape strike begun that month by members of a largely Filipino-American farm worker union, Helen, in her quiet no-nonsense way, settled the debate by asking, 'Are we a union or not?'"

In an article Remembering the Invisible Women Behind Cesar Chavez's Throne, written back in 1999, the Los Angeles Times brought to light the vital role of women activists, including Helen Chávez and UFWA chief negotiator and co-founder Dolores Huerta, commending them for their strength, balancing work and motherhood, and impact on American history.

At the time, the article read: "Little is known of women activism in the UFWA. And yet, was not the farm workers movement a family thing? Were not women like Helen Chávez (César's wife, who held the family together) and Dolores Huerta (chief negotiator and co-founder) equally responsible for its success? Why little mention of las mujeres, (the women) who led the grape boycott and kept the home fires burning? When teaching Chicano history, I focus on the women's contributions to the UFWA. Most history books (even those by Chicanos) rarely cite the work of esposas, hijas, hermanas, mamas, tias who made the grape boycott a success.

"In the early 1960s, when César began to organize field workers in the San Joaquin Valley, Helen Fabela Chávez was at his side. At that time, wages for farm workers were meager; working conditions were like those in the Third World. Housing, as described by Ernesto Galarza in 'Spiders in the House & Workers in the Field,' lacked sanitation, potable water and heat. Women like Helen Chávez worked the double day. They toiled in the fields, then at home eked out meals of beans and tortillas for their families."

The article also pointed out that at night Helen worked on union business: attended meetings, registered workers, became union bookkeeper and managed the UFWA credit union -- a full-time job that lead her away from the fields. She also had eight children.

"Without Helen at his side, César Chávez could not have fulfilled his dream of a union to serve farm laborers," the LA Times added.

Reportedly, Helen's "most public moments were her 'four arrests, two of which were widely reported' and although her 'acts of civil disobedience have been few, her example has encouraged other Mexicanas and Chicanas to undergo arrest' for the sake of the greater good. Chávez challenged the role of women in the activist movement and provided a template for other Hispanic women who eventually join the union efforts. 

"Chávez's personal experience of the hardships of working the fields made her an invaluable part of the spirit of the movement. Her involvement and passion for the cause became a huge motivator for other Latinos to join the union efforts. In 1974, news of her efforts spread as far as Europe. It was in 1994, a year after César's death, Helen accepted the US Presidential Medal of Freedom in César's honor. Due to the existing sexual division of labor in the union and in society, few women are able or willing to relegate their personal lives or families to a secondary position in order to pursue union organizing."

In 2008, Helen was awarded Latina of the Year by the National Latino Peace Officers Association of Los Angeles Chapter. She continued serving the Farm Worker Movement for decades and still lives at the National Chavez Center in Keene, Calif. 

"César Chávez: An American Hero" Biopic -- Actress America Ferrera to Play Helen Chávez 

Helen Chávez will be portrayed by actress America Ferrera in a tribute to César Chávez's powerful journey, Mexican actor Diego Luna directed a biopic on the influential leader called, "César Chávez: An American Hero," which will hit the big screen on Apr. 4, 2014.

The film is co-produced by Academy award-nominated actor, John Malkovich and Mexican actor Gael García Bernal, among others. Michael Peña stars in the title role, Rosario Dawson stars as Dolores Huerta, who co-founded the National Farm Workers Association with Chávez.

The impactful script, which includes passionate speeches and dialogue, was written by Keir Pearson, who wrote the Oscar-nominated screenplay for "Hotel Rwanda."