About the Project
In Fall 2022, Prof. Robin Ragan was asked to help The Advocates for Human Rights with the investigation of a Minnesota farm accused of labor trafficking. During this time, she spoke with several migrant farmworkers from Mexico. They reported working 90 hours per week in dangerously hot or rainy conditions, even during tornado warnings, with limited breaks for food and water. Many recounted fainting or falling ill. They also reported limited mobility off the farm– just a couple of hours every 2 weeks– and being forced to work even with severe Covid symptoms. Even so, what bothered them the most was the humiliation suffered frequently through yelling and insults by their employer. As a result of this investigation, workers were connected with legal counsel to pursue a special T visa (see: T nonimmigrant status) typically available to victims of trafficking. While the results of that investigation may take years to play out in the courts, Ragan wondered about the experiences of other farmworkers throughout the Midwest and how the H2A visa system (Visas for Temporary Agricultural Workers) works to bring migrant labor to this region each year. This hidden labor force puts food on all of our tables.
With this in mind, during Spring 2023, the students in Spanish 220: Spanish for Healthcare worked on a digital humanities project to raise awareness around the conditions of migrant workers. While many may have heard of such conditions in California or the Southwest, in the Midwest we are much less aware of migrant farmworkers all around us.
Each student was assigned one state in the Midwest and asked to investigate migrant farmworker abuse, especially as connected to work-related health hazards. In that process, students learned about inadequate housing, exposure to toxic chemicals, and unpaid labor. Students examined sources related to inspections, violations, and citations to uncover the lived experiences of migrant laborers in these spaces. Students then curated this data and documentary evidence into a public-facing website with an interactive map, supplemental information, attached media, and additional resources. They also documented the migrant health clinics available in each state as well as state laws and reporting procedures. In FY21, the Department of Labor certified over 317,000 seasonal farm jobs to be filled by H-2A workers.
"Midwestern Migrant Farmworkers" is a spatial study of migrant labor on farms across the Midwest. This project uses the platform Omeka with the Neatline mapping plugin.