Chasing the Harvest: Migrant Workers in California Agriculture (Voice of Witness)

Synopsis

'the Grapes Of Wrath' Brought National Attention To The Condition Of California's Migrant Farmworkers In The 1930s. Cesar Chavez And The United Farm Workers' Grape And Lettuce Boycotts Captured The Imagination Of The United States In The 1960s And '70s. Yet Today, The Stories Of The More Than 800,000 Men, Women, And Children Working In California's Fields - One Third Of The Nation's Agricultural Work Force - Are Rarely Heard, Despite The Persistence Of Wage Theft, Dangerous Working Conditions, And Uncertain Futures. This Book Of Oral Histories Makes The Reality Of Farm Work Visible In Accounts Of Hardship, Bravery, Solidarity, And Creativity In California's Fields, As Real People Struggle To Win New Opportunities For Future Generations. Among The Narrators: Maricruz, A Single Mother Fired From A Packing Plant After Filing A Sexual Assault Complaint Against Her Supervisor. Roberto, A Vineyard Laborer In The Scorching Coachella Valley Who Became An Advocate For More Humane Working Conditions After His Teenage Son Almost Died Of Heatstroke. Oscar, An Elementary School Teacher In Salinas Who Wants To Free His Students From A Life In The Fields, The Fate That Once Awaited Him As A Child--page Four Of Cover. Introduction : Look At My Hands / By Gabriel Thompson -- Executive Editor's Note / By Mimi Lok -- Map -- Maricruz Ladino, Produce Truck Driver -- Oscar Ramos, Elementary School Teacher -- Roberto Valdez, Farmworker, Various Crops -- Heraclio Astete, Former Sheepherder -- Rosario Pelayo, Retired Farmworker And Labor Leader -- Fausto Sanchez, Indigenous Program Community Worker -- Jose Saldivar, Irrigator And Pesticide Applicator -- Maria, Pedro, And Guadalupe Ayala, Farmworker, Table Grapes -- Ismael Moreno, High School Student, Part-time Farmworker -- Silvia Correra, Farmworker, Wine Grapes -- Harold Mcclarty, Grower -- Maria Elena Durazo, Labor Leader -- Rafael Gonzalez Meraz, Mayordomo -- Jim Cochran, Grower -- Beatriz Machiche, Head Start Manager -- Appendices. Timeline ; Glossary ; California Farmworker Legal Protections ; California Farmworker Organizations ; Cultivating Fear / By Human Rights Watch. Edited By Gabriel Thompson.