Rodgers: Immigration hypocrisy and Trump’s failed policy

by Lt. Gov. John Rodgers

The recent removal and detention of nine Franklin County migrant farmworkers exposes the hypocrisy and failed policy embedded in the Trump Administration’s immigration crackdown.

While it’s not clear that federal agents specifically targeted the Berkshire farm where the migrants lived, what is clear that immigrant workers – undocumented or not – play an indispensable role in our country’s food system.

Dairy farms in Vermont and around the country rely on people from Mexico and Central America to milk cows twice, sometimes three times a day, 365 days a year. Simply put, immigrants form the backbone of the dairy industry, just as they do for agriculture and food processing nationwide. Studies estimate that at least 40 percent of the immigrant agriculture workforce is undocumented.

Congress and previous administrations have recognized this reality of the farm labor market by establishing special programs that allow foreign workers to come here seasonally. For example, Vermont’s apple industry uses workers under the H2A program, which allows US employees to bring in foreign workers when domestic workers are not available. The same program allows farms in Florida, California and elsewhere to bring in seasonal workers at harvest time.

But Vermont dairy farms don’t qualify under the H2A program because cows need to be milked all year. For many years, Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy tried unsuccessfully to expand this program to include non-seasonal agricultural labor.

The long-term solution to our farm labor predicament is an H2A-like program for dairy, so the migrants can come here under a legal framework. Yet in the meantime, farmers still need the labor. And because most Americans don’t want to endure the long hours and tough conditions that milking cows require, our farmers have found a willing workforce with people who have moved here in search of a better life. Unfortunately, their quest to live the American dream places them in the crosshairs of the current immigration crackdown.

Over the years, Vermont’s migrant farmworkers have become a vital part of our community. They are Vermonters supporting an iconic Vermont industry. We need to make sure that those now in custody get the due process and civil liberties they deserve. Anyone arrested in this country, regardless of immigration status, deserves a hearing and the full protection of their human rights.

Author is Vermont’s Lieutenant Governor.