Bracero Program
The Bracero Program at its core was a set of agreements reached between the US and Mexico, which lasted from the years 1942 to 1964 and permitted Mexicans to temporarily enter the US as workers. The work carried out by these workers was mainly agricultural: harvesting asparagus, lettuce, lemons, tomatoes and cotton. Additionally, almost in observation of the maintenance of US tradition, utilization of immigrant labor for infrastructure, a considerable portion of the labor also included the construction and expansion of the US railroad system. Although, despite the grand opportunity this seemed to Mexican workers at the time, the true nature of the program was exploitative, based on mistreatment and provided extremely poor working conditions. Put simply, the reality of the Bracero Program was little expected by workers who held favorable preconceived notions of the US.
However, before exploring the migration patterns and first-hand accounts from braceros, it’s imperative to place this program within the historical context which gave rise to it. During the 1940’s the US had become involved in the second world war. This war began in September of 1939 with the invasion of Poland and over the course of a few years Europe was ravaged. By 1942 the Axis powers were at their zenith, and controlled land from France to Russia as well as China to New Guinea. Considering the US’ involvement in the war inevitable, Japan carried out a preemptive attack at Pearl Harbor which forced the US to participate. Fearing labor shortages and a rising demand in production, the US looked abroad for laborers and initiated bi-lateral agreements with the Mexican government in order to acquire workers. Not only to satiate the labor shortage, but also as a means to rectify previous “repatriations” and deportations of Mexican-Americans during the Depression. Upon reaching this agreement in 1942, only 8 months after entering the war, millions of Mexican workers were legally allowed entry to work in the US.
This was not the only influence in drawing workers, it is also worth mentioning the long-lasting effect of the Mexican Revolution which, despite beginning in 1910, produced a number of effects leading into the 1940’s. Immediately after, the economy was devastated: livestock was greatly reduced, agriculture and manufacturing was abandoned and currency as well as credit were destroyed. Beyond this political and social instability persisted through small-scale civil wars and rigged elections. These can be understood as push factors for the majority of Mexican workers: a need for work and stability as well as safety. The background which motivated the workers deepens the unjust reality of the program.
Moreover, throughout the images, it will take you through a journey of what immigrants endure as they travel from their homeland of Mexico, to the United States. The journey never gets easier, instead it becomes harder every time a person gets closer to the United States. It is a battle of who will make it and if you make it alive or unfortunately die in the journey. Thus, people will find legal methods to enter the United States in order to secure an entrance to the United States. They will enter through programs like, The Bracero Programs, which grants them a short entrance to the United States in order to obtain economic resources to secure a better lifestyle once they return to their native country, since there are limited work opportunities in their native land. Therefore, they take upon this dangerous journey in order to secure themselves a better life, which include poor living conditions, sanitation conflicts, and traps placed on their contracts.
In addition to the images, the videos of various testimonials will provide a more direct and dimensional perspective of the Bracero workers. There were around 4 million Bracero workers that participated in the program, but unfortunately, not every individual is able to testify. However, these testimonials work as a unified voice to represent Bracero workers and give them the international attention they deserve. It has been collectively determined and widely agreed upon that millions of workers of the Bracero Program faced harsh and unfair conditions despite the fact they were promised protection from discrimination and poor wages from the United States. Interestingly, after gathering testimonials from various Bracero workers, there is a spectrum of how workers felt about the program. Bracero workers such as Emilio Solis Pallares expressed his experience as a "comfortable" one. While Christ Luna and others focused their testimony by expressing their animosity towards the program by sharing their explicit experiences. Despite the differences in each worker's experience, the daunting and fomidable aspects of the program altogether revealed that these workers were "welcomed" to solely fulfill the agricultural needs of the United States during World War II. onsequat.
