Migrant workers aim to demonstrate their financial impact - May Day Strike gaining support
Submitted on Sun, 04/02/2006 - 11:42pm
Disclaimer - The following article is reposted here because it is an issue with some relevance to the IWW. The views of the author do not necessarily agree with those of the IWW and vice versa.
LAURA FIGUEROA - Bradenton Herald, March 31, 2006
MANATEE - Jimmy Delgado has not slept much the past three weeks. The hoarseness in his voice shows his fatigue.
By day he is a personal injury attorney fighting for his clients. By night he is on a mission, traveling from Arcadia to Ocala trying to get local business owners to support immigrant employees in a May 1-7 strike.
Delgado, a Palmetto-based lawyer, is part of a group of Hispanic business owners called the Concilio Mexicano de Florida, or Mexican Council of Florida, who are mobilizing to gain support from businesses across the state for the work stoppage.
The strike is calling for immigrants not to go to work, buy gas or purchase goods in order to demonstrate the potential economic impacts of not having an immigrant work force in the state.
"Imagine if that money is gone," Delgado said. "They buy their food here, they buy their homes here, they buy their cars here. We're not asking for handouts, if we don't earn it, we don't want it."
Groups like the United Latino Immigrants of Florida, an Arcadia-based group, spearheaded the strike in response to the ongoing political debate for immigration reform. The U.S. Senate is scheduled to vote on an immigration bill this week.
A bill was introduced by the Senate's Judiciary Committee on Monday that would create a guest-worker program to enable 400,000 foreign workers to work in low-skill jobs for up to six years.
The Senate bill being debated comes on the heels of House Bill 4437, a bill that passed in December that called for stricter measures, such as the creation of a 700-mile fence along the U.S.-Mexico border.
"They're confusing national security with immigration reform," Delgado said of HR 4437. "If you want to address national security, look back at 9/11. The terrorists either came in here from Canada or they came in legally."
Delgado said the Mexican council started out with a core of 75 business owners from the Tampa Bay area, and has garnered support from businesses as far south as Miami.
"I know it seems like Florida has been silent," Delgado said. "But we thought it was our responsibility to come forward. Our goal is to educate the businessman. Every businessman takes care of their own community. We give them the tools, the information, the facts, the numbers, the potential ramifications, so they can get on board."
The grassroots efforts of the United Latino Immigrants of Florida combined with the "business sense" of the Mexican council has allowed word of the strike to spread more, said Delgado.
"They're a really passionate group, they're good about getting to the streets," Delgado said. "We're businessmen, we're not going to take to the streets and start waving a flag, but what we can do is take care of the community. If they need supplies and food for a week we can provide that. We've been hitting the radios hard, educating the public. Now we see more people saying 'Yeah we can do this.' "
Much as they do around 2:30 p.m. each day, a group of 30 women, mostly immigrants, working at the Canal Road Greenhouses in Palmetto, sat down for a 15-minute break.
Some sipped on broth from their Cup of Noodles Styrofoam cup. Others munched on rolled up flour tortillas. All had heard about the strike.
All but one said they planned on participating.
"It's worth it," said Ana Quijano, 23, sitting on a stack of boxes. "If we start saving up money as of now, then that will help us get through that week."
Reina Bernache, 26, joined in on Quijano's sentiments and said she planned on not coming to work that week.
"I am scared," Bernache said in Spanish. "I think everyone is scared. But at some point you have to stop being scared. We work just like any other man . . . if we don't support each other as a community, no one else will."
Like Bernache, Jay Taylor, president of Taylor and Fulton Farms is also scared. His company has more than 10,000 acres of tomato fields in the Palmetto and Ruskin area that could be affected. The first week in May is prime harvesting time for the tomato crop, and his employee base is a largely Hispanic and immigrants.
"It's scary," Taylor said. "This could have devastating effects on the harvest. We agree with their aims and the message they're trying to get across. It just scares me as a businessman."
Having received an e-mail about the potential work stoppage, Taylor said he will try reaching out to his employees to "see if there is another way that we as a company can get the message out" about immigration reform.
"Maybe we'll take a truckload of ripe red tomatoes and drop it off at the steps of INS. That'll make headlines I'm sure," he said.
The strike could lead potentially to thousands of acres of tomatoes being left ripe on the vine, Taylor said.
May 1 was selected as the kickoff day for the strike because in Mexico and Latin American countries the day is celebrated as Labor Day, said Jose Rodriguez-Prado, secretary of the United Latino Immigrants of Florida.
Prado said the group is planning on having religious rallies in conjunction with local Catholic churches throughout the week.
"We want to pray and give thanks for what opportunities we do have," Prado said in Spanish. "The important thing is that we are united. We've been through tougher things than this as a community. We will pull through."
Bob Bartz, president of the Manatee Chamber of Commerce, said the chamber has not been approached about the work stoppage. He could not comment on the possible effects to Manatee County's businesses since the issue had not come up before the board of directors, he said.
Groups like the Coalition of Immokolee Workers and the Association of Community Organizations for Reform, a national activist group formed in the 1970s, have joined the efforts. Still Delgado said he will continue doing his part hitting the radio airwaves, and traveling from business to business to gather more support.
"There isn't any turning around," Delgado said. "People are relying on us. It's our turn to step forward."