Advocates for immigrant farm workers went to the New York State Fair to call on the New York Farm Bureau to do a better job protecting immigrant employees.
The Workers Center of Central New York and the Syracuse Immigrant and Refugee Defense Network petitioned at the Fair Thursday. In a letter to the Farm Bureau, advocates and workers asked for more protection against the fear of deportation, as well as better access to healthcare, housing and more stable wages.
The groups emphasized that immigrant laborers, many of them undocumented, help keep dairy products and produce less expensive. They also quoted a state study from 2022 that estimated undocumented immigrants contributed over $3 billion to the New York economy through taxes.
The groups assert that the Farm Bureau is the stated, “voice of New York agriculture,” and should therefore recognize and protect workers.
The letter calls on the Farm Bureau to:
- Support for the NY4ALL ((S2235/A3506) campaign, which would prohibit the discovery and disclosure of immigration status of workers and toher residents.
- Oppose the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, which would require all farmworkers to obtain legal immigration status before working.
- Promise not to allow immigration agents on your private property without a judicial warrant.