Mexican Farm Workers Research Paper

During the mid and late twentieth century a major Mexican immigration Boom happened. With many job opportunities in the agricultural field in the United States and an economy in mexico that was growing but only benefited the rich. Many poor Mexicans migrated to the United States. According to the book, “Mexican Immigrants In The United States” by Portes, Alejandro, Bach, Robert L. Between 1960 and 1970 the Mexican economy was growing at a rapid rate with only the top 5 percent benefiting from it. Unemployment and underemployment began to spread and income inequality got even wider. These events led to a migration of legal and illegal Mexican immigrant into the United States. Mexico became an economic paradise for those who were already wealthy. The rest who were left behind had no other choice than to

With the increase in salary many Mexicans would feel the money made would be enough to support their family, and live a more comfortable life. The growth of immigrants sparked around the 1970’s, and continued to grow as decades passed. According to the pewhispanic.org the immigrant population had a seventeen fold increase from the decades before. (seven hundred sixty thousand immigrants were currently in the United States in the nineteen seventies.) Even with the increase in salary Mexican americans were still unsatisfied, and believed they deserved more money, more respect, and less racial segregation. The leader of the United Farm Workers movement Cesar Chavez helped organize boycotts and strikes against the farm owners, and got others to stop buying grapes; this severely hurt the grape growing business. Not only did the increase in salary encourage others to immigrate to the United States, but better working conditions did as well. With more immigrants entering the United States, many Mexicans would find themselves to be illegally in the US. Chavez was strongly against those who were in the US illegally and would refuse to help them. Though these people were not receiving the UFW benefits, it encouraged them to apply for citizenship.

Despite harsh working conditions, farmworkers have worked constantly for years due to the need of necessities for their families along with themselves. After thorough investigation, I have come to a conclusion that even after so many years of protesting as well as working diligently, farmworkers still have experienced unacceptable working conditions, however they were not as bad as the past. There was a definite need for a drastic change due to the working conditions of the farmworkers. Conditions may have improved due to the social justices that Cesar Chavez including The 5 Year Strike has gained. As I was comparing both working conditions of today’s farmworkers with farmworkers of other times in history, I have come to find many differences

Prior to the creation of the United Farm Workers Union, there was another movement called the National Farm Labor Union led by Ernesto Galarza. During the 1940’s and 50’s, the National Farm Labor Union experienced “moderate success” (History of the UFW, latis.utexas.edu), while facing the bracero program; a program in which recruited temporary workers from Mexico during the time when World War 2 was in effect. The program drastically lowered farmworker wages of the everyday agricultural worker in the US. The arrangement between the US and Mexico would see that these temporary workers would not only get paid lower wages but also be required to return to Mexico after WW2.

Those were just the issues that migrants faced just trying to cross the border. They still had a lot more problems when they got to the US. A lot of these issues were with work. Mexican workers have been such an important part of the US economy. There was a program called the Bracero program. This was made back in the time when racism was major back in the 60’s

Mexican nationals have migrated across the border for short-term agricultural work since the 19th century. With a shortage of jobs, Mexican workers seek the promise of what the neighboring labor market of the United States has to offer. At the same time, the U.S. economy is in need workers to grow the economy and the history of U.S. relations with Mexico began as self-sustaining system of circular migration. On August 4, 1942 the United States recocnized a need for a temporary intergovernmental agreement to set the standards for Mexican agricultural labor (officially referred to as the Mexican Farm Labor Program).

Another great difference between  immigrants of the 1900’s and today is the hardship to legally crossed the border.  In the 1900’s, immigrants came to Ellis Island and were given a “brief” exam. If they passed the exam, the immigrant would be let into the United States of America soil. The most typical job for both the native and the immigrant was to own and operate a farm.The jobs in which the immigrants acquire are

In the 1920’s life for Mexican Americans was hard for many of them and easy for others. The 1920’s is when the immigration movement was happening where Mexican Americans immigrated to the United States. As Mexican Americans immigrated there was a list created, this list made them wait if the didn't have the right papers, everyone on the list weren’t able to immigrate so many decided to hide and wait at the border til nightfall to illegally immigrate. People would try to hide and smuggle their family and friends across the border by hiding them in cars

Hispanics have been immigrating to America since the beginning of the Spanish Colonial era. Up until the 1920’s Mexican Americans have boomed in rural places in america. The 1920’s was meeting the beginning of a renaissance, a better promised life for both native americans as well as immigrants. Businesses were booming, wages were higher, and the industry was creating a bright future for America. However, Mexican Americans continued to face hardships as well as few successes leading up to the 1920’s. Whether these were Native born Americans with a Hispanic background or newly immigrated Mexicans, Mexican Americans faced the hardship of poverty, discrimination, segregation, and struggles during the 1920’s.

The farm workers’ rights issues were also a major matter that the Mexican-American Civil Rights Movement dealt with along with the other issues. Mexican-American migrant farm workers had to endure the harsh working conditions while traveling from farm to farm in the United States in search for work. While working, the farm workers tended to be exploited by farm owners while also receiving low wages that kept them below the poverty level (Ramirez). Due to certain

Many of the farm workers were not very sympathetic of Cesar Chavez when they first met him, but as he began to talk and express the ideas he had for the movement, workers soon knew that he was the leader they needed. The farm workers were constantly moving from place to place looking for better work opportunities, but they were always afraid of not knowing if they were going to have enough money for gas, to get to their next destination. Cesar Chavez made the farm workers realize that by being passive and not giving up in their movement, no matter the struggle that came along, together they would make their goal

The Day without Immigrants and the Mexican Farm Labor Program were both linked together because without strong programs and organized movements as powerful as the Mexican Farm Labor Program a lot of laborers would be scared to speak up and try to fight for their rights, but now they are empowered and believe there is hope to receive what they need no matter how long, or how tough it is. The immigrant labor movements have been growing throughout the years and it will continue to grow because more and more people are educating themselves with these events and they will be able to spread the word as

The link between Mexico and poverty is a large reason why children are forced to work in factories. Poverty began to be an issue for Mexico starting many years ago. In the 1940s, when industrialization began taking place, Mexico’s economy was growing at a rate of 6 per cent per year (Latapi and Gonzalez). This increase in the economy created two new social classes: the urban middle class and the new working class. By the late 70s, at least half of the working middle class held jobs related in manufacturing (Latapi and Gonzalez). This employment gave wages high enough to allow one worker the

Mexican Americans also shared problems of poverty and discrimination with African Americans. According to Healy, Mexican Americans, like African Americans, have been viewed as cheap, unskilled agricultural labor that has been methodically excluded from mainstream America. Unlike most immigrants from Europe, who lived in urban areas, Mexican Americans and African Americans were prone to live and work in rural parts of the United States. Because both groups lived in less urban areas they had limited resources for education, skill development and economic opportunities. At the same time, however, Mexican Americans

Before the Nationality Act of 1965, many migrants came from the mid region of the United States to California for economic prosperity. In the 1930’s, during and after the Great Depression, the Mid states of America went through severe dust storms and droughts known as the Dust Bowl. Resultantly, the dust storms destroyed the ecology and agriculture of the land itself. This caused farmers to be financially in debt due to not being able to make money. The debt and poor land quality led many people to lose their property and