For spring break my sophomore year, I went to my roommate’s farm in California. While on the farm, I was able to see many of the aspects of running a farm and meet many of the people who made this farm operate. However, I was unable to interact with the laborers as much as I probably should have. The workers on this farm were immigrants (presumably illegal) from Mexico. I never really questioned my roommate about the lives of these workers, because it had never occurred to me to think of their need for food. They were surrounded by fields of greens and fruits, how could they be hungry?
It wasn’t until I took the Local Food Geographies class my senior fall that I understood the impact of food on farm laborers. Many farm laborers, such as those on my roommate’s farm, are unable to access the food they need and desire. Native foods can be a commemorative and comforting indulgence for immigrants, so why don’t they grow their own food? The reality is that these workers hardly have the time to operate huertas for their own pleasure and consumption. The other issue is when workers are undocumented, they are unable to receive SNAP or other assistance for purchasing the food they need.
I later asked my roommate about the food access available to these workers and she said they were allowed to bring home some of the crops. While these workers may have access to the foods on my roommate’s diversified organic vegetable farm, other laborers working on monoculture fields do not share this same luxury and if they did, they would only take home one crop–definitely not enough for sustenance.
A lot can be done to alleviate this disparity, especially for the undocumented laborers who comprise a vast majority of the farm workers in America. I am not a policy expert, but it may be possible for government policies to recognize their efforts and provide them with support to create a more even production and consumption pattern of food in America.
Well put! Killin it, Jen.