As a woman farmworker, I have been sexually harassed many times. My silence made me more vulnerable. I felt alone, like I was the only one.
But I was wrong.
According to Human Rights Watch, women farmworkers are regularly subject to sexual harassment, physical and emotional abuse and rape. The PBS exposé, “Rape in the Fields,” also documents this ongoing violence, detailing how men repeatedly abuse their power as land owners and supervisors without consequence.
To confront this reality, many of us came together in 1988 to start a network of women farmworkers to advocate for the end of gender-based violence in the workplace and in the home. In 1991, we made the commitment to become a nationwide organization. In 2011, this organization was formally established, Alianza Nacional de Campesinas (National Alliance of Women Farmworkers), growing to include 15 organizations that span 20 states. Today, we represent more than 700,000 women.
We estimate that nine out of every 10 women have experienced some form of violence while working in agriculture.
We have found that instead of improving over the years, gender-based violence in U.S. agriculture remains a serious concern. We estimate that nine out of every 10 women have experienced some form of violence while working in agriculture.
The 2022 One Billion Rising campaign — created by the global movement, V-Day — is central to our efforts to end gender-based violence. The campaign kicked off on Feb. 14, Valentine’s Day, and will run for the remainder of the year to bring awareness to the staggering statistic that one in three women on the planet will experience gender-based violence during her lifetime. With the world population almost at eight billion, this adds up to more than one billion women and girls.
The campaign seeks to call attention to the violence that women experience in the fields, and to encourage victims to speak out, erasing the stigma that surrounds this issue.
Our member organizations will be organizing events in states including Florida, New York, Oregon and California. Attendees will gather, virtually and in person, to share information, engage in conversation, and advocate for the end of gender-based violence.
Many organizations will incorporate the “Break the Chain” dance into their risings.
“Dancing insists we take up space, and though it has no set direction, we go there together,” says V, formally known as Eve Ensler, founder of V-Day. “Dance is dangerous, joyous, sexual, holy, disruptive, and contagious and it breaks the rules.”
We are also demanding changes in the workplace.
For instance, it calls on employers — including large-scale farmers — to develop and implement violence prevention programs.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has the resources to hold employers accountable and ensure that these programs are implemented and enforced.
Still, OSHA can do more, for instance, by creating more specific standards for what counts as workplace violence. Such standards must include the realities of women farmworkers, who often experience abuse and do not feel comfortable coming forward given that most of them are undocumented.
Tailoring and including particular standards pertaining to gender-based violence in the fields would help us take a step forward to stop the traumas that thousands of women farmworkers experience daily in our food system.
As women farmworkers, we give life to children, care to our families and sustenance to this country. Our firsthand experiences have made us experts on what needs to change to ensure that there is respect and dignity at home and in the workplace. This is why we are part of One Billion Rising. This is why we expect you to join us.