Agricultural Activism - Then and Now
Like Fonzy, I was also surprised to learn about the longer history of agricultural activism/strikes that Mitchell discusses in this second part of Lie of the Land. At first, I had thought that Filipino and Mexican workers had only come together through the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee in the 1960s. Even on the UFW's official website (see below), it does not mention this earlier history. I wonder how much of this has to do with Cold War Communist repression, as three organizers of the American Communist party were involved in reinvigorating the militancy of the workers who would then proceed to strike vehemently.
This leads me to think about what outside support for agriculturalists/workers looks like today. As I was researching the South Central Farm on Wikipedia, a long list of of "notable supporters" came up, many of whom were in the entertainment industry. I think it's interesting that since the 1930s, entertainers in Hollywood have been involved in labor advocacy and leftist endeavors. But even then, they contributed from afar. It made me think about how Hollywood itself is some sort of landscape to be maintained of its own, in which (more privileged and pampered) workers negotiate politics in different ways. [Actress Daryl Hannah was arrested trying to prevent the eviction of the South Central Garden farm]. In what ways does Hollywood as a landscape of its own clash with the politics of urban agricultural workers?
This leads me to think about what outside support for agriculturalists/workers looks like today. As I was researching the South Central Farm on Wikipedia, a long list of of "notable supporters" came up, many of whom were in the entertainment industry. I think it's interesting that since the 1930s, entertainers in Hollywood have been involved in labor advocacy and leftist endeavors. But even then, they contributed from afar. It made me think about how Hollywood itself is some sort of landscape to be maintained of its own, in which (more privileged and pampered) workers negotiate politics in different ways. [Actress Daryl Hannah was arrested trying to prevent the eviction of the South Central Garden farm]. In what ways does Hollywood as a landscape of its own clash with the politics of urban agricultural workers?
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Producing Landscape: Claims to "Grow" in California by Christofer Rodelo (15 October 2014)
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