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Mexican Migrant Workers: Dying to Work

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Biology 103
2001 Second Web Report
On Serendip

Mexican Migrant Workers: Dying to Work

Rebekah Rosas

For hundreds of years, Mexican immigrants have been coming to the United States in order to find work. Agriculture has been a main venue for these workers. They come Stateside when the crops come in, and often move from state to state as each plant is ready to harvest. For this reason they are called migrant workers. "Migrant farm workers travel north during the growing season, following the crops, or travel back and forth from home bases in Florida, Texas, California, and Mexico." (1)

Not only do migrant workers face innumerable hardships such as low wages, unacceptable housing, and lack of health care, yet to make matters worse, Mexican farm laborers are faced with the complete lack of regard of their lives as human beings. Day after day, the laborers are forced to work in conditions that put their lives in peril. Farm workers spend hour after hour in immediate contact with crops that have been profusely sprayed with pesticides. Many Americans believe that the United States is working to make our environment more "health-friendly" by using less toxic pesticides, however, pesticides are still used to attack organisms, such as insects and bacteria, yet, when workers are in close proximity with these pesticides, they begin to demonstrate dangerous effects in the form of illness. In fact, "Despite tougher regulations, the U.S. is no exception when it comes to endangering workers' lives with pesticide use. Over one billion pounds of pesticide active ingredients are used in the U.S. each year, 80% of which are used in agriculture."(2) Although there is a push to move to more organic farming techniques, there are still many laborers who work on farms that use pesticides. In reality, "80% of the indigenous people [of Mexico] that live in this country work in the fields where pesticides are sprayed."(2)

The effects of working with these harmful pesticides are quite extensive. Minor symptoms include "dizziness, headaches, weakness, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, excessive perspiration, blurry vision, chest pains, breathing difficulties, watery eyes, nose and mouth, muscle pains and cramps."(2) Beyond these minor symptoms, there have also been higher cases of cancer within the migrant worker community in both children and adults. Research states that "exposure to pesticides causes an increase in cancer in migrant workers as compared to the general population. Migrant workers exhibit an increase in cancer, particularly in the mouth and pharynx."(1) Besides cancers, there are many other diseases that migrant workers face. "The exposure to agricultural chemicals is being studied in relation to increases in neurodegenerative disorders, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, and risk of cleft palate."(1)

For children, the risk is even higher, as not only are they exposed to the dangers of pesticides, but they are also born with the toxins in their systems, as their mothers worked in the fields while they were in the womb. "Pesticide exposure may be more severe for children than adults because of their smaller body mass and their different metabolisms."(1) In addition, these toxins act on a child's life from the time they are in the womb. "Exposure to pesticides during and post pregnancy may have long term effects such as neurological damage or birth defects in children. The brain, skeleton, thyroid, and immune system are potential targets of chemicals that cause endocrine damage."(1) Pesticides have even been linked to "much higher than normal rates of leukemia" in children of migrant workers. If a child is "lucky" enough to avoid physical disablements, they might not be so "lucky" in avoiding disorders with their brains. "Chemical exposure may cause developmental disorders, learning disabilities, mental retardation, attention deficit disorder, and other anomalies that interfere with cognitive abilities."(1) Basically, children of migrant laborers, who often work on the farms themselves, are bound to come out of the fields with some type of physical disadvantage that their non-laborer counterparts do not have to endure.

As informed citizens, we must ask ourselves what can do to remedy this situation? We need to fight for more organic farming even though it will cost the consumer more. However, not only will organic farming be better for us, the consumer, but also the workers who have to deal with the food as their livelihood. Also, we can support organizations such as the United Farm Workers. We can donate money and lobby with them. They can be easily accessed by their website: http://www.ufw.org/. All in all, we need to become more conscious of the world around us and what we can do to help our fellow man.

WWW Sources

1)ref

2) ref

3) ref

 

 

Continuing conversation
(to contribute your own observations/thoughts, post a comment below)

11/05/2005, from a Reader on the Web

Mexican Migrant Workers: Dying to work! Give me a break! Illegal immigration is up to 20,000 aliens caught on average each week....You did not mention the failure of NAFTA....you also did not mention the reason migrants really do these jobs....to support their families abroad.....also, the average american citizen abhors this type of work....but, we also have the biggest failure of all...The Migrant and Seasonal Worker Protection Act....aren't they in charge of fining these employers who knowingly hire these illegal aliens.... ...here's the loophole....employers are not allowed to acknowledge false documents!!!! But if you really want to see the forrest for the trees Ms. Rosas think about this....for the past several decades all the monies collected for social security from these illegal aliens will never be acknowledged publicly...they won't see a cent...they are directly responsible for keepint social security afloat!!! Your solution is admirable but extremly way off the mark!!!! Come see me and I'll educate you...something you're lacking in!!!

 


Additional comments made prior to 2007
Respsonding back to 11-5-05 comment that these so called Migrant workers are all undocumented and therefore taking their monies back to Mexico is not solely true. I was a migrant worker, now in my late 30's I was raised in the fields across the US. My parents were not undocumented, and neither were the 100's of families that worked besides us. We were large familes of 10 to 15 people for each family. They were there becasue it was the only means of survival to us during the 60's and 70's. The lack of education and not speaking the language lead our families to the only place where we could work hard without the barrier of our language interfereing. How do I know they were all documented? We all lived in a camp for migrant workers, we had to be documented to live there. We all migrated from state to state, many of us together and many of us were able to remove ourselves from this type of work, but for most we stayed with it. For over 30 years my parents and grandparents were the product of migrant work, and for the past 20 years I have lived through countless of cancer in my family. I have seen my grandfather die due to lung cancer, he had sprayed pesticides for a land owner for over 10 years. I became is caretaker as a teenager, I remember not having to work in the fields because he had been "Shipped" to us by his land farmer because he had become too ill to continue working. I saw him suffer, no insurance, I saw him slowly become nothing, once a big man, now only a tiny thin man who could only wait for what awaited him. He lived for less than 30 days with us. Now my own parents suffer will other cancers. My own sisters suffer from deformation of fetuses, ovarium and myself in my mid 20's with breast cancer. Now, that I "DO" have insurance I can care for myself, but those that do not are left alone, to die, either in this county or their own. And back to Medicare, it's the only thing I can agree, for those who leave not a cent will they see, but for those who are here as my parents, Medicare can't possibly help them with all the ailments they are facing. The money a person made or makes is less than minimum wage, so guess how you plan to live your last days as a citizen of this country as a migrant worker? Blessed are those who leave back to their countries of origin, at least medical care is affordable ... Hispana de Oklahoma, 15 February 2006

 

 

In Spanish class we are talking about migrant workers and my teacher has them work for her, but they don't work in fields or anything. Anyway, it's interesting to see what they really go through and it makes Americans kind of look bad I think because we are so lazy. Not always but honestly would we go through all that work to get here and then work in conditions like that? No, we'd be like "I'm out." and get welfare or something. I really feel that these guys deserve a break, and it's not like they are illegal so that doesn't have anything to do with it. Plus, they really only do the jobs we WON'T do. I mean, do you know anyone who's been fired because a migrant worker took his place? Didn't think so... Anyway, the article was very good and enlightening ... Jessie, 20 April 2006

 

 

Dear friends in the United States....

We are Mexican women from villages in the southern Mexico state of Guerrero.

Our brothers and husbands have left us for work in the US.

We strongly support closing the US-Mexico border to illegal entry.

We did not want our men to leave and we want them to return to us.

As we struggle as women, against the difficulty of our situation,
we focus all effort on building a business to sustain ourselves and our children.

But we need the help of our husbands and our brothers
to re-unite our families and to help us develop economic opportunity
in the traditional fashion jewelry production industry that is the heritage of our parents.

Please close the US Border to illegal migration and send our men home to us. Thank you.

Best wishes from Mexico to all persons of good will.

We should continue to be friends and respect each other.

Atentamente ... Eusebia Flores, 21 April 2006

 

 

People will do what they need to do to eat. Its human instinct for survival. Some people lay on their ass have kids collect welfare sell drugs etc. THE REAL PROBLEM IS OUR WELFARE SYSTEM. End the welfare system and you end most of this problem. We are attracting people to come to this country because we offer welfare not only to them BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY to people that are already living here as ( disgruntled) citizens who collect WELFARE and are told by their leaders that they deserve this welfare. This creates the enviroment that the taxpayers are fools. Well, they are. It then leads to a weakend foundation of capitalistic values. Capitalism is merely the free trade of goods for a price that people are willing to pay. That very simplicty leads to freedom. The welfare system is of socialist origin that tells you that peoples rights are not as important as government control. It is that government control that leads to the "immorality" that leads to a disrespect of law. One of those laws being the illegal crossing of the border but as I stated, MORE IMPORTATNLY, a welfare system. If we were only concerned with helping people that really needed help then the charitable organizations would be doing their stated job and taking care of people on a local level. But the government is more concerned with having people dependant on them the government as opposed to themselves or others who WANT to help not forced via the welfare system. That all leads back to illegal immigration and its enormous problems ... DD, 15 October 2006

 

 

"dizziness, headaches, weakness, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, excessive perspiration, blurry vision, chest pains, breathing difficulties, watery eyes, nose and mouth, muscle pains and cramps." ---- These symptoms seem like the exact symptoms of anyone working anywhere in the heat of the summer... Pesticides or No Pesticides ... Reader on the web, 27 November 2007

Comments

Serendip Visitor Annie's picture

Re: Impossible

There is no way that millions of immigrants buy their own food, clothing and pay for their shelter. Where are they getting the funds from? Working? No way someone can make $8.00 an hour and pay rent, buy a store, house, pay for college, and all the other needs that a person need to survive. This is nothing more than a lie, and a bad lie at that. If anyone cannot comprehend as to why this is impossible, then lets face it, they are playing us for stupid.

We did not have this problem in the past with our resources draining until all the immigrants started flooding into America, and the weak American's justifies it. During the "Civil Rights Movement" when people were being murdered, why they were not flooding in then? I tell you why, because they did not want to leave a violent place and risk their lives to come to a violent place, so they waited until the street was clean, so to speak, and they got the green flag. Maybe that's why they use the terminology "Green Card" which is a sign to go.

If you notice, the people that is in agreement with allowing all these poor people to invade the USA are the ones who has the funds already, and is living quite well. Many of them are wealthy, and seeking more wealth. It is the Middle Class and the poor who are suffering from all these immigrants invading America. When these immigrants get a good taste of America, they will show their true colors so to speak, and then those that brought them here will suffer also. They will change the language of America from English to Spanish because, lets face it, they will be the majority, and they will learn the skills of America and we will be working for them. I think we are asking for something and is making a serious mistake for saying, "Free Opportunity" to all immigrants. Just keep coming to America, it is a land of opportunity, and if you need to manipulate the system and you can, do it. It works. Just play on America's weakness. If you notice, the majority of illegal immigrants are Hispanics, not others.

visitor 's picture

Reply

So Annie you ask, how can somebody earn $8.00 an hour and pay for clothes, food, and shelter? if you notice a lot of Mexicans families tent to live together. Living arrangements suck, sometimes you see 4 people to a room, and 2-3 families in one house. That is how majority of families save up on housing expenses. Then we see the men, women and older children all working low-paying jobs to have money to buy food, and clothing and pass day by day.

By reading your comment I can just tell that one, you probably have never lived or visited a place where crime is so high you are too scared to walk to the store a block away from your house. So no you do not have the right to comment on why people leave their county, you do not know the struggle and pain these people go through. Two, your conception of the welfare system is way off. If you ever thought that the govt. was unfair with, you imagine how it is with somebody who does not have the documentation to be here. And three, I don't know why you are complaining about "Free Opportunity" if you ask majority of Anglo people, where their grandparents are from,? I bet majority will say Germany, or Ireland. We are all originally from somewhere else, and the only people who have the right to claim America is the Indian Americans.

p.s usually immigrants aren't so lucky to start earing at 8.00 an hour.

blessings and I hope that one day you can be more open minded and see that we are all different and we all have the right to be because how boring would life be if we are all the same.

Serendip Visitor's picture

i have been a dairy farmer

i have been a dairy farmer for 38 years. i have had american works for 20 years. In the last 20 years i have watched the american work force get very lazy and not want to work. It's seems to be easier for people to get unemployment and welfar checks. I have been very supportive for american help but i have mexican help coming to work for me, because i can't depend on my american help. I hate to say it but the american work force is lazy and you can thank the goverment for doing that and giving people a free ride. The americans that work hard for what they have good job you have my blessing.

Serendip Visitor's picture

mexicans are my friends

mexicans are my friends

Bill's picture

Need workers

We are looking for 3 cooks to work in our restaurant ..

tony's picture

work

im from south TX and would want to work up north ,I am a US citizen, and i was wondering if you would pay for transportation or how could i get there ?

thank you for your time and i will wait for your response.

Serendip Visitor's picture

great help i have had them

great help i have had them working for 2 weeks no problems

Serendip Visitor's picture

not my friend when they steal my country

They have broken our laws entering illegally....the bleeding heart liberals states they are looking for a better way of life...GUESS what WE The People of our own USA are now looking for a better life. They are a drain on our own social system, they refuse to follow our own way of life thats why a majority of them cant and wont speak English. They have stolen all our construction jobs that our own men and women can no longer get. They are NO friend of mine when they have come to destroy this beautiful country.

El chapo's picture

Chinga tu madre gringo. We

Chinga tu madre gringo. We Mexicans are all hard workers, we don't take none of your lazy butts job. We are here trying to survive and you think it's easy ?
Having to learn English and working in the fields. It's really hard, kind of embarrassing when we go to a store and we don't speak English and most of you all try to humiliate us because we don't speak your language. But I loved to see you work in the fields out there with the hot sun. I'm a freshmen in high school that every summer works in the fields picking up tomato. Trust me being a migrant worker is tough even today.

Serendip Visitor's picture

Re: not my friend when they steal my country

The information you provided is inaccurate. When migrants buy food or clothing items, they pay a sales tax, like any American worker. Migrants get no "free" welfare benefits or unemployment benefits. Many Americans, like myself, find 70 hour work weeks with low wages and no overtime to be untolerable. Also, as mentioned in the article above, these Hispanics pay the price with their bodies; the deadly pesticides and contaminants in their work environment greatly decrease their health.

Look at the facts. Most speak good or fair english. Construction jobs are dangerous and Hispanics will work at a lower pay rate than American workers. Besides, we are lacking in these jobs because of the Recession.

They do NOT drain our social system. Non-citizens have no access to Social Security.

Put some real facts in your argument lest you come across as a racist scumbag.

Serendip Visitor's picture

what beautful country

what beautful country full of welfares and lazy people

Leslie  Northington's picture

"Not my friend when they steal my country"

I'm going to objectively respond to this emotional issue. As a young girl growing up in suburban Southern California, I watched the landscape change before my very eyes and push me out of my home town, Temple City. I wasn't raised a racist. I used to teach english to the Asian sisters, He sin Han and He Chung Han, at recess in 5th grade. They were the only asian immigrants at Longdon Elementary back in 1972. Now, Temple City may as well be called "Little Saigon," with the old shop signs replaced with asian writing. Where folks used to say a friendly "How ya' doin?" now, people look through you and not excuse themselves if they bump into you on the street.
Driven eastward, now settled in the Inland Empire, as I couldn't afford the Mountain life, I watched our neighbors and previous owners of my great state, slowly infiltrate the towns. They didn't steal anything. Our boys GAVE it to them. The Latino's were desperate, determined, committed, grateful for a chance in a nation of opportunity, resiliant and humble.
Our boys were one by one being layed off and "outsourced" on our own turf. The Mexicans happily took 1/3 the pay of our men. And I'm sure our boys didn't see the constructions slump lasting as long as it has. THere was ALways another track of homes going up. Work will come along.
"I won't work for anything less than $25 hour" says my spouse who walked off a job at our landfill due to intolerance of the Mexicans who outnumbered him. Instead of making it work for the sake of his family, his pride sent my household into an economic disaster.
That was in 2006 or 7 shortly before we learned that they were'nt going to refinance our adjustable mortgage and we walked away from our first home. ANd a home town for the kids. And neighbors. And the respect of our family . Yeah. Family. We sure found out who the a##holes were.
Did you now that only 140 years ago in Kings National Park above Fresno, that the Indians and Mexicans in that region had never seen a white man? I mean we are still new on the turf, so it is with maybe some smug pride that the canvas is turning brown.
All I know, Is that the Latino's are up at the crack of dawn, work tirelessly, are devoted to each other as families, are at the ball fields on Saturdays in their new SUV's while my husband and I watch them play from our gargage that has become my husbands unemployment "cave" and drive an 18 year old Lexus.
We are looking for a bankruptsy lawyer for little money down so I can go back to work and not get garnished.
We may need a divorce attorny as well.
We'll see.........

Serendip Visitor's picture

drugs and people on

drugs and people on unemployment and welfare destroyed our country and lazy americans i am a white american and i am calling my own race lazy

Serendip Visitor's picture

Stealing your country??

Have you forgotten that the U.S.A. annexed 1/3 of Mexico?

Serendip Visitor's picture

Stealing your counrty

Did you know that in the war we took over Mexico, but gave most of it back??
Kinda nice of us to give it back after taking it over.

Sue's picture

Migrant Workers

I would like to write a paper that concentrates on the policy variations in cities and towns (in the US) that affect this cohort. Would like too know if can share any knowledge?? Also, have a question in my blog - if you have time do visit. Thanks Sue

charlie's picture

Dissolving the border is not

Dissolving the border is not enough to make a real difference. I think that the border should be dissolved and Mexico split up into US states, but also with coinciding healthcare reform for both countries. Dissolving the border would grant Mexican workers amnesty, making them eligible to join unions and be subject to more humane working conditions. However, a lot of people fail to realize what type of impact this would have on Americans if there is no corresponding healthcare overhaul. I've known plenty of ppl that have gone down to Mexico for various surgeries ranging from getting their ACL sewn back on to breast implants. In fact, my friend just had a mastectomy and went to TJ to gdet the reconstruction surgery because of the over the top costs in America. If you look at the breast augmentation before and after pictures, you'll see the difference in quality that Americans are subjected to because of our failed healthcare ystem. Spoiler alert: don't click on the link if you just ate. By merging Mexico with the US and overhauling the health care system, we'd be able to end this ridiculous trend of jumping the border for sketchy surgeries. Yes, America will lose the slave labor of the Mexicans that keep most of our industries running, but if they could survive abolition back in the 19th century, they they can survive this.

Serendip Visitor's picture

Liberalism may be a disease of the brain

Are you insane????? We dont want what Mexico is bringing into the states. The drug cartels, the anchors babies that are draining our economic and social system....are you living in some unrealistic liberal bubble???

Trey Brom's picture

hundreads of years

MEXICANS HAVE BEEN TRYING TO GET TO AMERICA FOR CENTURES SINCE THE DIANSOURS

Miguel's picture

Not true!!

The Americans were the ones that crossed the border. They were the ones that took the Mexicans lands. Yes, the mexicans continue to cross the border, but they do it to better themselves. So don't go around saying that the mexicans have been trying to to cross the border for centuries. If you recall from your history class it was the Americans that took away about half of the land that they now occupy.

Serendip Visitor's picture

Orale : )

Thanks for the good laugh. I've been reading up online about farmworkers since I watched Dateline's "2010 America Now-Children of the Harvest" last night. Some of it's been pretty intense and harsh. Alot of bashing with comments and replies; everyone trying to voice their point of views. -Child of the Harvest 1965-1980

Anonymous's picture

Immigration

I am gathering information on illegal immigrants for an essay and I am really confussed the information available is vast but what in the world is going on? You know I have lived in America all my life thank god and I realize today that I have been sheltered and protected by this country. Wow I really had no idea of the hardship around me and I am 39 and a mother of two girls whom have been raised by me soley so I understand hardship, but I had no idea how bad things could really be. I feel awful for thinking that my life was so horrible in America. God Bless America for all that it offers to me. I think that we are going to come to a solution with these illegal immigrants, we have to. Natural Law compells us to help them become law abiding citizens and our neighbors. I am preying for them.

Anonymous's picture

mexicans are not

mexicans are not alieons...
they are human beings just as we are..
people seem to think just because they are here illegaly they can call them aliens, but thats not how it works...
some do come legaly and they just want to live life..
the same way we do..
who cares if they dont pay taxes

Anonymous's picture

alien: 1. a resident born in

alien:

1. a resident born in or belonging to another country who has not acquired citizenship by naturalization (distinguished from citizen ).
2. a foreigner.
3. a person who has been estranged or excluded.
4. a creature from outer space; extraterrestrial.

they are aliens, you would be one if you went there.
they also use OUR tax money which is why we care
and dude, try to learn how to spell before trying to convince people shit; you just made yourself look dumb.

a US citizen's picture

who cares about taxes??

well it's obvious that you are a well educated American because your sentences are so concrete, but I will tell you that those of us that DO pay taxes sure care about it. Of course you are being casual about it because you are saving a lot of money by not paying taxes.

Anonymous's picture

It is equally obvious that

It is equally obvious that you are about as well informed and well read as the typical American. The average Migrant worker pays the same percentage of taxes that you do. Sales, gas, tobacco, alcohol, real estate (Even if they rent they are contributing to the real estate taxes) and every other onerous tax we pay. If they pay less in dollar amounts it is only because they make less.

Study after study demonstrates that illegal or legal migrants pay more than they use in taxes.

If the morons in Washington stopped spending the BILLIONS on fences, surveillance equipment, detention facilities and focused on actually solving the problem, we would All save huge quantities of money. We could start by punishing the people who hire Illegal migrants. They create the supply of work that the migrants come here for.

Jenny's picture

Great Article

I am an a Chicana girl and I came from a Mexican parents in which I am proud of my culture. I really believe that all the migrant workers should be more protected because of the hard work they are doing that no americans are not willing to work in this kind of jobs. Americans don't want to risk their lives or work in minimum salary. In of course, on the second day they would even quit the job and find themselves another jobs. In which they are legal to work anywhere they desire. I just wish for the best and hope there be changes for all the migrant workers. There should have the right as others do. To me this country was made for everyone not for one who put foot in this country at first. Suppostly this is a coutry of opportunities in which I don't think so. Well, god bless everyone and hopefully, someday their will be changes for all the illegal people that they deserved for their hard working in this country.

ViaRosa's picture

si si jenny

I am, like Jenny, a chicana. Proud to be of the Hispanic heritage, i read this blog/newsfeed and wonder. why are there so few people who stand for equality? why am i looked as a beaner, or a jailbreak, in school? Mexicans are humans as well and even if they are not from America, isnt American supposed to be a land of career, work, freedom..? These people have gone through hell to cross the border and are living through heat stroke, illness, and harsh, hard work. They are people too and deserve to be given protection and respect. I hope that one day, they will not only deserve, but they will be given protection and respect by the country. God bless these people set to work labor. Te Amo Miguel! ~Aguantate tantito caera en tu mano~

Serendip Visitor's picture

Another chicana here

My grandparents were migrant workers who luckily got out of the cycle by purchasing their own farm. My father and his siblings all got out of farming after high school and most of them got their college educations. The main issue is with MEXICO! If they would provide their citizens with better education, the people would have better opportunities and not have to live this hard life. Though my family loves to go back to Mexico, I find it a very sad place and refuse to go there. Children work in stores when they should be going to school to learn. Obviously the migrant workers are not educated enough to know what harms the pesticides can do.

TJ's picture

Jenny, Not all Americans see

Jenny,

Not all Americans see Mexicans in the same way. Some are blind. Others see people through the eyes of God.You are a wonderful, beautful creation of a loving God.

Anonymous's picture

esl

i am mexican and want to tel u that this article was so nice and the immigrants should never give up

Jeweler's Display's picture

In the letter of Mexicans to

In the letter of Mexicans to US they mentioned that traditional fashion jewelry production industry is the heritage of their parents , so perhaps if they focused on this industry this will really be a great help for their livelihood. Better than farming, I guess.

Anonymous's picture

i was a migrant worker

I am a memeber of a mexican farm working family in california. me and my family used to live in mexico, but Unfortunately as we all know, mexican government is not efficiently working out as it should be. it is not my parents fault they were born poor, that they didnt have any education because they could not afford to go to school, because instead they had to work full time to help support the family and help bring food to the table. they had to live a life with just about enough for survival. so they grow up under this conditions they get married have kids and decide to give them a better future. they dream of living in better conditions, but in mexico they get no opportunities at all, they come to the us, they bring us along with all the imaginable sacrifices, we make it across the border. now we are here, we all work, some of us go to school. i definetly think working conditions are horrible, we get no legal rights, but most of all, i feel no one has the right to call us intruders, a pest in american society, why? because they just dont know how hard it is to be one of them, they just dont have a clue. rodrigo meza/ california

Anonymous's picture

Research paper for college

I'm currently taking a Hispanic culture and language course in college. I chose to do my final paper on Hispanic migrant workers, the history and current situation thereof. I would like to correspond someone who is/was a migrant worker, find out their history, their opinions of the laws protecting migrant workers, and what has happened since they have returned to their native land. If someone could direct me to a website or would be interested in telling me their story, I'd greatly appreciate it. Otia

Serendip Visitor's picture

Mex migrants

Did you get the stories you wanted? I wonder if you could get permission to share them with me as research for a play I'm writing.

Irma Gavaldon's picture

The article is excellent,

The article is excellent, where can I find the reference #1?.
Thank you inadvanced for your attention
Irma Gvavaldon

Anonymous's picture

I pray for integrity

I am currently living in a border-town in Thailand. Bordering Burma. As I am learning about the plight of the migrant worker here, I am beginning to wonder about the migrant workers in my American homeland. Have I turned a blind eye to their plight? Have I refused to take responsibility for the sins of my countrymen? (I'm certain much of the circumstances here are much different than in Mexico - considering the brutal military regime in control in Burma - but all of humanity shares the same need for food, water, and shelter. The list could on even further)

I pray that Americans will have integrity in their hiring relationship with the migrant workers who come from the border south of us.

Whenever people leave their homeland to find work, they are putting so much at risk. And their rights are at risk also. For those of us who may be in a position to educate migrant workers about their rights and responsibilities, please do so. For those of us who have the opportunity to hire a migrant worker, please do so with integrity and within the boundaries of the law. Even go the extra mile. Please do not allow yourself to be exploited or to exploit another.

As far as the dangers of different jobs, continue to be educated and educate others about the realities - not sugar-coating it.

Unfortunately, the reality is that we are all sinners, which in turn is why we have so many troubles. We have all done things to harm another. Let us not forget to forgive one another, as the Lord has commanded us and forgiven us. In the meantime, may we be patient as the Lord will one day bring judgement and justice. It is so difficult to wait for justice, but it will come. Trust in Jesus, and He is able to give us hope and a peace that passes ALL understanding.

Do you have any questions for me? Comments?