Our Food is Soaked in Blood
Heyyo!
Hope you're having a great day. This month I decided to look more into who exactly is growing and harvesting our foods (in the United States). What I uncovered was a system of exploitation that stems from our racist policing of the border and our streets. The US food system draws heavily on both migrant and prison labor to keep prices down at the supermarket. If you’re interested in learning more, check out the video below, or peruse the three links and three quotes I discovered while researching for the video.
Also, if you’re interested, consider supporting Our Changing Climate on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/OurChangingClimate
Three Quotes:
“Seventy-five percent of farm laborers earn less than $10,000 per year, and their median income is $7,500 or less per year. Farm workers have been described aptly as ‘among the most exploited groups in the American labor force.’”
— Juan F. Perea
“According to Beth Lyon, clinical professor of law at Cornell University and founder of the Farmworker Legal Assistance Clinic, many of the clinic’s clients have claimed it is more appealing to work as an undocumented farm worker than to work through the H-2A visa program. Why? Because the visa is tied to employment, giving workers no ability to change employment if conditions are unbearable, and because there is so little support, and so few legal resources, for immigrant workers.”
— The Real News Network
“Incarcerated workers are stripped of even the most minimal protections against labor exploitation and abuse. They are paid pennies for their work in often unsafe working conditions even as they produce billions of dollars for states and the federal government.”
— The Guardian
Three Links:
Slavery and the Modern-Day Prison Plantation (JSTOR Daily)
Some Reflections on Prison Labor (The Brooklyn Rail)
‘A lot of abuse for little pay’: how US farming profits from exploitation and brutality (The Guardian)
You can support Our Changing Climate directly through Patreon: www.patreon.com/OurChangingClimate
Hope you have a wonderful weekend,
Charlie