Farmworkers Leading the Way Forward
With Rosalinda Guillen
Rosalinda Guillen (left) and Syd Carver (right)
Photo Credit: Nima Sherpa Lama
“We are not a charity organization. We provide services to the leaders that are part of the farmworker movement that are helping to change the structure.”
The system of industrial agriculture in the US has a long history of disregarding the wellbeing of farmworkers and the land they are working on in pursuit of maximum profit. Through her personal experience as a farmworker coming from a family lineage of farmworkers, Rosalinda Guillen has seen firsthand the unethical conditions that impact farmers here in Whatcom County, and beyond.
In this episode, Rosalinda shares her journey from her childhood in the fields to living in labor camps, working in banking, becoming a full time organizer for the Rainbow Coalition, and founding a grassroots ecofeminist organization committed to food justice and immigrant rights, Community to Community. She recognizes that changemaking is a collective effort, and alongside many incredible changemakers, she continues to center the voices and visions of farmworker communities to create a world that is better for everyone. This story highlights real issues and real hope for another world, reminding us that we each have a role to play in creating our future.
“It's not just about what's harming us and what's bad. What's the vision for the kind of world we want to create?”
Issues:
Farmworker communities, especially in the US, are impacted by issues such as poor wages, pesticide use, racism, and political attacks on activists. The legacy of slavery in the US has lead to the agricultural industry continually treating farmworkers without dignity and respect. Farmworker communities know what they need, but are often overlooked or silenced. As those most directly impacted by the agricultural industry, it is their voices and visions that must lead the way forward in changing this system; however, we all have a role to play.
Inferred SDGs:
SDG 3. Good Health and Well-Being
Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all, at all ages
SDG 15: Life on Land
Conserving and sustainably using land ecosystems with the primary goal of preservation
SDG 5. Gender Equality
Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
“We can't protect the environment without changing who we are and how we interrelate.”
Art from C2C’s office space, artists unknown
“The biggest shame and I think outrageous disregard from the agricultural industry is that all they care about is profit. Not about is the food really healthy, are we hurting the environment, are we in it for the long haul? No. It's just like the profit this year, this season, that's all that matters. Doesn't matter what you're poisoning—whether it's a human or the innocent creatures like the bugs we’re killing in the soil, or the farmworkers—as long as they make their profit. It's on the backs of the farmworkers most of the time.”
Farmworkers Seeding the Future Artist: Brenda Brito Espinosa
“It's not just the farmworkers’ challenge, it's everybody’s challenge. People are just not taking responsibility for it.”
All quotes are from our episode with Rosalinda Guillen
Caught & Woven by: Syd Carver