#Repost @ericalexia ・・・ I asked my mama why she had chosen to migrate to Southern Oregon and she told me that she kept hearing the stories of other women and men who had already been here. "They talked about the trees, the mountains, the fruitful landscapes and they described my home, what I know here in my pueblo." There was a high demand for farm workers in this region and my parents came to work the land. My mother has been the backbone of our family, breaking her back doing labor intensive work for minimum wage or less. Women in the US make 22% of the agriculture workforce. They are the most exploited workers in the country and are even more vulnerable than males because of gender discrimination and sexual harassment that they are subject to. With fear of being reported to ICE make women hesitant to report violations of their rights. Farm workers number 11 million, many of them migrants, and are the poorest workers in the country, performing some of the most difficult and dangerous work, often without drinking water, proper clothing, or protective gear and even sanitary facilities. Unless you have family members who work the land, farm workers become invisible in the area even when you pass a farm on the daily. Farming is a skill, not everyone knows how to harvest food. We need to demand dignity, respect, and justice for our farm workers. #justicia #farmworkers #immigrantrights #equalpay #livingwage #nswa #nationallaborfederation #intersectionalfeminism #foodsecurity #nobannowall #xicana #womensrights #lacausa #pnw #oregon #artforchange #socialjustice #racialjustice #immigration #immigrantrights
