Before taking this class, I didn’t consider the people behind the food that I consume. I considered the animals behind it, or questioned expiration dates, but never much more than that. Now after discovering that farm laborers are unable to afford the food they produce was extremely eye opening for me. I appreciate this article going more in depth on this topic, and I think that more people need to be educated on this subject. Eighteen years of my life never before hearing about this is too long, many people live their lives without knowing what goes on behind closed doors.
“A majority of farmworkers in the United States today are immigrants from rural Mexico.” This quote really stuck out to me. In recent times, the importance of immigrants to our culture and how we survive is often overlooked. From the beginning of the U.S.’s history to now, immigrants have been very important in our success as a country. Continuously letting the people who do so much for us starve is parasitic and inhumane. Taking and giving way less than what these people deserve. I completely understand why a farmworker would rather not be employed year round, the work load is extremely intense physically, and for what they get in return I can’t imagine how it isn’t mentally damaging as well.
Knowing that agribusinesses will sometimes abuse their power against the immigrants that work for them really makes you wonder what their morals are. Because of things like language barriers and not being protected by U.S. laws because they don’t live here legally, they are put at risk of being mistreated by employers. This is almost like modern day slavery, companies and employers being abusive towards the people who are the reason why the company is successful in the first place.
Other food movements not paying attention to farm labor issues is also very shocking to hear. I understand it may be difficult for every organization to raise enough money for every problem within the food system, however spreading awareness is free. As last week’s article suggested, instead of just focusing on a singular issue within the system, we need to examine every problem with it.
When talking about injustices in the modern United States, California is one of the last states people would point to. However, the upbringing of California’s agricultural system was filled with the mistreatment of farm workers (typically immigrants). This goes to show that despite it being one of the more progressive states, people are still being exploited just because of where they come from.
“Producing an “ other, ” in this case a labor force that can be viewed as undeserving of the rights and benefits,” this quote is another one that really stuck with me. Immigrants get treated like machines rather than actual humans who deserve respect and rights just as anyone else. I appreciate how the article brings up various other points in the U.S.’s history when specific groups of people were mistreated by the government, while still contributing to the advancement of the country.
Migrating to the U.S. in hopes of a better life, only to be refused basic rights in your place of employment. Not only that, they are treated like animals and paid an unlivable wage. People who are anti-immigration jump to conclusions as to why people keep immigrating to the U.S. They don’t recognize that they flee their countries because of things like domestic abuse, to give their children better lives, to be more financially stable, and so much more. I don’t see why people are so against immigration, as a country, we should invite people in with open arms. This country was built up from the bottom by immigrants, it's a "melting pot" of all different kinds of people and cultures, and they continue to support us, so we should be more than happy to support them in return.
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