Cynthia Ramirez

Professor Lewenstein

English 1A

05 November 2018

 

The Story Behind Your Food: The Work to Get it to Your Table

About three years ago, my mother, Yolanda received an incoming call from an unknown phone number. She debated whether to answer the call or just send it straight to voicemail. Although she ended up answering the call, the man on the line was my aunt's field supervisor. He was contacting my mother to inform her that her sister Maria, had to be rushed to the emergency room in critical conditions. My mom froze for a couple of minutes, then rushed to the car to make our way to John F. Kennedy Memorial Hospital located in Indio, CA. My mother was quiet  the whole ride, I could not imagine what she was feeling at the moment she found out her younger sister was on a life or death situation. When we arrived at the hospital the doctor informed us about my aunt's health. My aunt, a single mother age of thirty-five, had suffered a heat stroke due to dehydration and the tough working conditions that she was in.

Luckily, my aunt redeemed her strength and within a week she was back up on her feet and ready to work. When she informed my mother about her decision of going back to work in the fields my mother was so furious that it seemed as if she was burning in flames. My mother nor her family understood why she would jeopardize her life once again. My mother decided to sit down with her and find out the real reason why she would go back to work and risk her life once again. My aunt told my mother that she could not quit working in the fields because, without any legal documentation, there was no other job she would qualify for. Nowadays, illegal immigrants believe there is no other way to earn money, other than having to risk their lives for it. Money comes and goes all the time, but a person's life comes and goes only once.

Maria Linares is a believer, not a Justin Bieber “Believer” fan, but a believer in the American Dream. The dream that if you work hard in America you will soon climb up the social economic class latter. Ms. Linares a single mother of two, came to America without a dollar in her pocket. When she arrived at the Coachella Valley she quickly looked for a job and luckily, she found a one as an agriculture worker. She talked to her field supervisor when he informed her that she would be getting paid ten dollars and fifty cents an hour. She would have to work from six in the morning till three in the afternoon. She thought to herself how from zero dollars she would soon have earned one hundred and three dollars. This offer sounded incredible more like unbelievable to her.  Sadly, after one day at the job she was overwhelmed by the awful conditions she had to work under. As a strong independent mother, she decided to keep her head up high and continue working no matter the circumstances and believed that the hard work would soon pay off. About three months later, she was in a life or death situation, due to the horrible working conditions. She suffered from a heat stroke caused by dehydration and terrible weather conditions she worked in. Fortunately, her health was stable allowing her to go back home. A couple of days later she returned to the fields to work once again as a believer of the American Dream.

Fig. 1.This illustrates immigrants and millennials on their journey to reach their American Dream, yet it is crumbling due to the wave of changing standards and opportunities of today’s society (medium.com).

How can we put a stop to the injustice agricultural workers face? These hard-working individuals get taken advantage by their supervisors. These workers are taken advantage of mentally and emotionally in the fields, as well as in their personal life. I now know that these workers not only have to perform their job under unacceptable conditions, but they live under them too.  As a matter of fact, many reporters discuss the working conditions of these agriculture workers, although many never bother to look deeper into the problem. Putting a stop to these field workers’ injustice will be a long fight, but it is not impossible. We must come together as a community and stand up for those who are courageous enough to work in the fields. My aunt is just one of the many field workers that believe in the American Dream. Many workers believe that by working hard no matter the job's conditions they will soon achieve their goals. Unfortunately, agriculture jobs are not valued or respect enough as they should be. It takes a strong individual to risk their health for their job.

The article "The Coachella Valley's Farm Workers Housing Crisis Actually Got Worse Than Last Year," describes how many farm workers lack housing. Author Gustavo Solis claims that ever since The San Felipe Migrant Housing Complex was closed, the numbers of farm workers suffering from housing has increased. I strongly agree with Solis because as a resident of Mecca, I have witnessed several immigrant families living in their car due to their financial status. Solis argues that employers should not take advantage of their employees. Instead, they should provide their workers with housing as a way to improve their living conditions. In addition, if employers were to provide more housing resources they would not have to worry about a labor shortage. It makes me feel disgusted for this injustice, of these migrant families having to live in such undesirable and harsh conditions. It takes a strong individual to work in such a heavy job, yet some employers still treat them with disrespect. "You wake up dehydrated and then you have to work." says farmworker Zavla. It is a daily routine for field workers. Not everyone is willing to take off their suit and tie to work in these harsh conditions. Therefore, it is time to improve these workers’ living circumstances before it is too late.

I met field supervisor Mr. Gonzalez on October 22, 2018, at  67 Ave Mecca, CA during his lunch break at 10:30 am. I arrived ten minutes before our agreed time. As I stood on the freshly watered dirt I was able to observe the workers for a couple of minutes. I noticed how the workers all kept their heads held up high and worked as if there was no tomorrow. Minutes later, Mr. Gonzalez approached me and escorted me to the back of a white 2002 Ford truck, where a red large umbrella hanged providing some shade. My eyes automatically became attracted to the supervisor’s truck. All I could wonder was why did he not have one of the newer trucks as all the other supervisors do. He explained, “When being a supervisor it should not matter what truck you drive, but most importantly how well equipped your team is.” I did not clearly understand his response at first until he began talking about all the equipment he has purchased for his workers including uniforms and winter clothing. Mr. Gonzalez was once a field worker and sadly enough he was under a racist, impatient and ungrateful supervisor. Three years later, he became the supervisor and promised his team that he would stand beside them no matter what the circumstances were. He states “Team has no I in it.” As we continued to talk, Gonzalez told me about a hard-working couple around the age of twenty one that he once hired. The couple had crossed over to the United States leaving everything behind in Jalisco, Mexico with the hope of achieving the “American Dream”. Soon enough he found out that this couple was expecting a baby. The wife was three months pregnant, although she was not showing any signs of pregnancy at all. He decided to talk to her husband and dismiss her from work “The agriculture job is no job for a pregnant woman,” so he stated. The husband told his supervisor that he could not fire his wife because without her paycheck they would soon end up homeless in the streets with their newborn baby. Mr. Gonzalez explained to the husband that it was his duty to guarantee all employers were physically capable of working out in the field during hard conditions, which his wife was not. After hearing this story, I questioned supervisor Gonzalez how he felt about the decision he had made and if he felt guilty that the family and the newborn baby would end up in the streets? Gonzalez stated, “ Of course I felt horrible and extremely guilty but there was nothing else I could do.” Supervisor Gonzalez went home after that devastating moment and talked to his wife were they both agreed to provide shelter at no cost for the young couple until they were financially stable. Wow after hearing him tell me that I was speechless I was simply out of words by his kindness act. Senor Gonzalez assured me that not all field supervisors are as bad as society pictures them to be, but that does not mean the working conditions have improved for all workers. Although some supervisors have improved their worker's conditions there are others that have not, and it is up to those to rise up and speak up to their oppressors.

Fig. 2. This pie chart demonstrates records gathered by "National Farm Workers Ministry" organization, showing how field workers only receive 0.3% of income from the agriculture industry (NFWM.org)

Admittedly, California growers already find themselves struggling in this economy. In the article “Can We Afford to Pay U.S. Farmworkers More?” global producer coordinator for Whole Foods, Matt Rogers argues that raising the minimum wage for the workers will only cut into their profits. Therefore, they will be forced to hire fewer workers. Although, I recognized that money does not grow on trees and it is difficult for these workers to invest more money in the agricultural industries investments pay off sooner or later. Nevertheless, investments are what allow businesses to grow and expand. What the grower's argument fails to consider is that when they invest in their worker’s wage the more workers the growers will attract, this would allow the growers to expand their working lands. In addition, when increasing investment in the agricultural lands the more profit the growers will have. Investments can be heavy in grower’s wallet, but in the long run, investments provide stable profits.

As a single mother and migrant field worker, Maria walks through her life on a single thread. In between, she is a loving caring mother at home, and a fearless worker in the fields. Maria represents one of many migrant workers who have risked their life daily out in the field for a low wage pay. Over the years, society has created a stigma associated with agricultural workers. This stigma allows others in society to assume that migrant field workers are not upper class worker therefore, they are not educated. Furthermore, this stigma leads to financial difficulties when field workers try to climb up the social ladder. Agricultural jobs are taken for granted and are not respected by society, this job takes more than physical characteristics, but mental characteristics, as well as responsibility. It is time we unite as a community and stand up for those who work for one of America’s number one economic backbone job.

Works Cited

"California Farmworkers Suffer More Heat Deaths and Illnesses than any Other Workers in Outdoor Industries." The Desert Sun, Nov 22, 2015. ProQuest, https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.collegeofthedesert.edu/docview/1764904563?accountid=42321.

Ficks, Leia. “The American Dream: Changing or Gone? – Voices – Medium.” Medium.com, Medium, 27 Mar. 2017, https://medium.com/fhsaplang/the-american-dream-changing-or-gone-99cec832386b

Godoy, Maria. Dolores Huerta: The Civil Rights Icon Who showed Farmworkers 'Sí Se Puede'. NPR, Washington, 2017. ProQuest, https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.collegeofthedesert.edu/docview/1939623885?accountid=42321.

Gonzalez, Daniel. "SHORTAGE OF WORKERS IMPERILS YUMA CROPS." Arizona Republic, Nov 21, 2006. ProQuest, https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.collegeofthedesert.edu/docview/238806006?accountid=42321.

“LOW WAGES.” NFWM, NFWM, nfwm.org/resources/low-wages/.

McMillan, Tracie. “Can We Afford to Pay U.S. Farmworkers More?” National Geographic, 31 Mar. 2016, http://www.nationalgeographic.com/people-and-culture/food/the-plate/2016/03/31/can-we-afford-to-pay-u-s-farmworkers-more/.

Plevin, Rebecca. "As Illegal Immigration Drops, Farmers Turn to Controversial Program for Labor." The Desert Sun, Apr 29, 2018. ProQuest, https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.collegeofthedesert.edu/docview/2031946018?accountid=42321.

Plevin, Rebecca. “In Riverside County, Farmworkers with Guest Visas Have Increased Tenfold in Two Years.” Desert Sun, The Desert Sun, 28 Apr. 2018, http://www.desertsun.com/story/news/2018/04/27/illegal-immigration-drops-coachella-valley-farmers-turn-south-get-labor-through-controversial-progra/480316002/.

Solis, Gustavo. “ The Coachella Valley’s Farmworker Housing Crisis Actually Got Worse than  Last Year.” The Desert Sun Online. The Desert Sun. 9 June 2017. Web. 1 Oct. 2018.