My grandfather's labor helped America become a superpower. It's time this country recognizes him for it
This piece was originally published in the San Francisco Chronicle.
NICK GONZALEZ: My abuelo (grandfather in Spanish) was born in a tiny pueblo called Mezcala in Jalisco, Mexico. At the young age of 12, his father died in prison. Though he was an avid student, he was forced to leave school to work and support his mother and six siblings. When local jobs could barely afford to put milk and tortillas on the table, he ventured north to California in 1955 at age 14 to work in the bracero program–a temporary federal work program to import farmworkers from Mexico to alleviate agricultural labor shortages.
Over the program’s duration, from 1942 to 1964, over 2 million Mexican farmworkers kept America fed while World War Two raged and the subsequent post-war economy boomed. Braceros did work that other Americans did not want to do. And their efforts helped push America’s gross domestic product from $200 billion in 1940 to $300 billion by 1950. It further topped $500 billion in 1960, establishing the US as the richest nation in the world. This economic growth was supported by a steady food supply from farmworkers of color who were underpaid, neglected, and discriminated against.
Most faced dehumanizing conditions during their tenure in the program – and my grandfather was no exception. The first time I talked with my abuelo about the bracero program was the only time in my life I saw him cry. Because of racial stereotypes that Mexicans were dirty and carried disease, every bracero was subject to spray by pesticides, stripped naked in front of everyone else crossing the border. They also labored under intense heat and unsafe conditions. Wage theft was prevalent and workers essentially lived on top of each other in cramped shacks with poor plumbing. My abuelo, already aching from the impact of being a teenager, far from family in another country, was always disheartened to know that his labor was unappreciated by the country he fed.
Despite the labor and contributions of my abuelo and the millions beside him, very few Americans have even heard about the braceros. The neglect of these heroes in their working lives has been followed by a neglect of their stories in our education system. This has had a cascading effects on the mistreatment of today’s farmworkers, even as they’ve kept America fed amidst a global pandemic. Addressing this starts with recognizing and teaching about the place of the braceros in American history, and the role that farmworkers–who remain predominantly Latino–play in keeping America running.
In California, 79 percent of individuals named in social science textbooks are white. This lack of education about farmworkers of color affects workers and their families. Legislators continue to make public policy decisions that treat farmworkers as economic assets and not human beings. Today’s farmworkers in California have worked amidst a global pandemic with minimal access to PPE and in crowded housing conditions that led to higher COVID-19 infections and deaths. These are the real consequences of not teaching an inclusive and truthful history.
We can ensure these stories are represented in education by implementing ethnic studies courses at the high school level. A study from UCLA shows that taking ethnic studies courses in high school helps all students mitigate racial biases and establish a stronger connection to their American identity. A bill in California–Assemblymember Medina’s AB 101– would make ethnic studies a high school graduation requirement. This bill should be signed into law and replicated across the nation. Teaching the stories of all Americans, including the braceros, will ensure that future public policy leaders know the histories of underrepresented communities and make legislative decisions that consider their experiences.
As we enter the 33rd Latino Heritage Month in the U.S., I’ve reflected on the pathways of my Mexican American family into this country. On my mother’s side, my grandfather’s grandparents were Mexican Revolution refugees and my grandmother immigrated in the 1970s. On my dad’s side, my abuela’s father went back and forth between Mexico and the US for work before settling in San Francisco while my abuelo came through the bracero program. Millions of Latino families like mine trace their journey from similar pathways and through the braceros. Now 80 years old, my abuelo is among the last of them alive.
It’s long past time to teach stories like my grandfather’s. Doing so can help today’s farmworkers who deserve better treatment and a pathway to citizenship for keeping America fed amidst a pandemic. It also ensures that the braceros’ descendants, like me and my family, see our stories in American history. As Secretary of Education Dr. Miguel Cardona would say, we’re "as American as apple pie and rice and beans.”
Nick Gonzalez is a former Policy Analyst at the UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Initiative and a current MPP candidate at Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy. He is originally from San Mateo County, California.