Presenter(s): Monique Falcon — Sociology
Faculty Mentor(s): Julie Weise
Session: (In-Person) Poster Presentation
In 1942, the Bracero Program, a bilateral agreement between Mexico and the United States to bring in Mexican male laborers was created. This program brought over 4 million braceros to the United States and provided contracts for these men to legally enter the US and provide manual farm labor. They worked in many different states like Texas, Washington, Oregon, and California. Within this agreement, the US promised to house, feed, and protect Mexican workers’ rights. However, as the program went on, it was quickly noticed that this promise would be broken as these braceros faced harsh discrimination in the states and extremely poor working conditions, resulting in horrendous injuries. During the Summer of 2021, I had the amazing opportunity to conduct deeper research for my history professor, Julie Weise. In total, I worked 8 weeks, averaging around 35 to 40 hours a week combing through documents and listening to prerecorded interviews with former braceros via the Bracero History Archive. These braceros endured hip injuries, concussions, sore and cracked feet, dehydration from going hours without water breaks, sunburns, and in some cases, were diagnosed with cancer due to lack of protection from toxic pesticides. This is an extremely important piece of US history, yet it is hardly talked about as much as it deserves to be. It is extremely important to remember these braceros and give credit to all their hard work and sacrifices, and acknowledge our mistakes.