Summary
California farmers, many of whom supported Trump, face a potential crisis as his immigration policies threaten mass deportations of undocumented workers, who make up at least half of the state’s 162,000 farm labor force.
Deportations could devastate agriculture, leading to labor shortages, unharvested crops, and rising food prices.
Farmers hope for solutions such as workforce legalization or expanded H-2A guest worker programs, though these have been criticized for exploitation risks.
Historical parallels to programs like “Operation Wetback” and the bracero system highlight possible labor and human rights challenges ahead.
The point isn’t to actually deport these people, it’s to give their employers and landlords a powerful tool to exploit them and prevent them from benefitting from any social services.
When you put it like that, it sounds like slavery with extra steps.
Yep, the more precarious their legal status, the more compliant they are. This is all about suppressing labour rights.
That’s why the Republican playbook regarding the border was always just talk, and Trump somehow doesn’t get that it was always a scam to get the votes of the racists without ever seriously placing to follow through.
If all farm workers were legally in the US, they’d form unions right off the bat, especially since a strike during harvest season is going to fuck over a farmer financially within days.
But pushing them too far could result in them just starting some fires and leaving to go cross the border back home. Sure they left for a reason but pushing them too far is going to make them leave for one.
Not only does it cause compliance it creates a perfect setup for exploitation, extortion, and trafficking.
Fuck me, I hadn’t looked at it this way and I should have.
It’s such a noble and rare thing to admit that you understand something on a deeper level because of an internet comment that I genuinely don’t know how to respond.
Well done friend, and happy holidays.