Farmworkers in the U.S.

Ag. Secretary Tom Vilsack: Irony on Shirley Sherrod Incident

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Written by Bruce Goldstein Saturday, 14 August 2010 08:12

In David Broder's column in the Washington Post on Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, who has impressed him and us with concern for affecting all populations in rural areas, he notes that the Shirley Sherrod incident does not reflect Vilsack's overall abilities or interests.

Briefly speaking about rural poverty, which remains a major priority for Vilsack, Broder reports that "farm income is up 9 percent over last year, and farm exports are at nearly record levels. But most of those living in rural America are not farmers."

Farmworkers contribute mightily to huge increase in exports of fruits and vegetables over the years, helping our trade balance, but farmworkers have garnered little of the benefit.

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Web Documentary on Farmworkers

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Written by Bruce Goldstein Friday, 20 November 2009 09:16

Rick Nahmias, photographer and author of the book, The Migrant Project (Univ. of NM Press), and the California Institute for Rural Studies have created a streaming web documentary entitled: "Fair Food: Field to Table." It is available at http://fairfoodproject.org and on youtube.com.

The documentary is in three parts: Part 1: The Farmworkers, Part 2: The Growers, and Part 3: The Advocates. Rick said "together we hope they will give you and others a multi-dimensional view of what is happening around domestic fair food issues and what you can do to help make change."

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FLOC shakes up RJ Reynolds Shareholders Meeting

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Written by barb howe Tuesday, 12 May 2009 11:26

Last week the Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC), a farmworkers' union that is currently organizing the tobacco workers who harvest tobacco for RJ Reynolds in North Carolina, held an action in Winston-Salem during the annual RJ Reynolds shareholders' meeting. Some FLOC members and supporters gained access to the meeting and were able to present shareholders' resolutions in support of farmworkers' rights (all of which the company rejected). After the meeting supporters waved flags and passed out leaflets to passersby in downtown Winston-Salem, then march to a nearby church that was supportive of the cause for a rally and picnic lunch. Farmworker Justice's Communications Coordinator, Barb Howe, was there to photograph the event. Click on any of the photos below to start the slideshow. {gallery}FLOC{/gallery}

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Bon Appetit joins campaign for fair food

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Written by barb howe Wednesday, 29 April 2009 07:51

Bon Appetit, one of the nation's largest food service companies is sending a strong message to growers who exploit the workers who harvest our nation's food crops: "The growers "can do the right thing, and our five million pounds of business can go to them," said Fedele Bauccio, Bon Appetit's chief executive. "Or they can let the tomatoes rot in the fields." Read more in The Washington Post.

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