Farm workers ditch shifts amid ICE raid fears as food prices set to skyrocket
Story by Falyn Stempler
Scores of immigrant farm workers did not show up to work today in fear of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids amid President Trump's crackdown.
Around 75% of immigrant farm workers in Bakersfield, California, ditched their shifts after Trump ramped up his threats by removing protections against ICE raids in "sensitive areas," including schools and workplaces.
Some schools have begun issuing materials to staff in preparation for a potential raid as immigrant-dominated fields such as agriculture are noticing a trend that could threaten the U.S. food supply.
Advocacy group America's Voice believes that U.S. rural and agricultural regions will likely be the hardest hit by Trump's immigration policies, which threaten mass detention and deportation of millions.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) claims that agents are only targeting alleged drug and human traffickers, though reports suggest a different reality on the ground.
Border Patrol agents in unmarked vehicles have allegedly been carrying out racially profiled raids in California's agricultural center after stalking immigrants outside stores, CalMatters reports.
Estimates suggest that between 400,000-800,000 people are farmworkers in California, which is responsible for about 13% percent of the country's agricultural production value that is worth more than $25 billion, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Reports suggest law enforcement began cracking down on immigrant farm workers in the Bakersfield area earlier in the month after Trump's election win was certified by Congress.
In one of multiple reported incidents, law enforcement allegedly swooped through a farm in Bakersfield the day after the 2024 election results were certified.
Sara Fuentes, store manager of a local gas station that the workers frequent, told CalMatters that agents in civilian clothing and unmarked Suburbans detained people outside of her store before their shifts.
"They didn't stop people with FedEx uniforms, they were stopping people who looked like they worked in the fields," she told CalMatters.
The following day, she says, none of the regular farm workers came to the shop for breakfast.
Eyewitnesses captured videos of several Border Patrol agents and officers, some uniformed and some not, standing outside of the store, intimidating immigrants.
Ever since farm workers have been petering out in fear of getting detained or deported by immigration agents.
The USDA estimated that between 2020-2022 about 32% of crop farmworkers were U.S. born, 7% were immigrants who had obtained citizenship, 19% were authorized immigrants, mostly permanent residents or green-card holders and the remaining 42% were unauthorized to work. The majority of these workers have Latino backgrounds.
Given that the majority of farm workers are immigrants, experts warn that the price of food could skyrocket under Trump's immigration policy.
The AV report noted how anti-immigrant crackdowns in the past decade have led to devastating impacts for farms, such as crop rot, across several states, including Alabama, Florida and Georgia.
America's Voice wrote in their report, "This early example of the 'Trump effect' on how the on-the-ground law enforcement interprets the range of their power is a chilling reminder of what we witnessed under the first Trump administration - and what could be the start of something worse as soon as next week.
"The unmarked cars, the racial profiling, abusive harassment, and wide dragnets are likely just the tip of the spear of the incoming administration and the signs are unmistakable: there are 'enemy invaders' within threatening everything 'real Americans' hold dear, and the federal government will be interested in critical oversight in how local officials deal with the 'enemy.'
"Unfortunately, Bakersfield is likely the prelude for what we can expect in the coming weeks and months - and worse when unconfirmed Trump appointees Stephen Miller and 'border czar' Tom Homan are in charge of immigration policy.
It warns, "The tone and culture they set will be just as important as the policies they begin to implement. As individual law enforcement and vigilantes feel empowered to take drastic action with little concern for consequences or oversight, our situation could get out of hand quickly and mass family separations will likely begin again. And, as we saw, the impacts will be felt by families, communities, businesses - and, frankly, all of us.
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