Farmworker Justice estimates that 45% of farm workers are undocumented immigrants, and these workers, along with other immigrant farm workers, make up the backbone of our food system. Yet the Trump administration is cracking down on immigrant laborers, resulting in 1.2 million immigrants leaving the labor force this year. Our two guests today, Alba Velasquez and Darin Von Ruden are experts in the US food system, and they tell host Douglas Haynes that they’re concerned about the rising fear they see in immigrant communities in California and Wisconsin. 

As a new wave of ICE raids rocks Los Angeles and southern California, Velasquez says that immigrant parents are afraid to let their kids walk to school, afraid to go to the grocery store, and even afraid to go to work in local restaurants and farms. Von Ruden has also noticed the growing sense of fear in Wisconsin’s dairy industry, and says that fear of detention or deportation is driving workers to stay home. Wisconsin’s small dairy farms aren’t in a position to absorb the losses when workers don’t show up. Both notice the rippling effects of ICE raids on the mental health of workers and their communities to the entire food system.

The repression of immigrants is magnified by the cuts to federal food programs like SNAP, making hunger a growing concern for the very workers who grow the US’s food. Now, 23,000 non citizens are losing access to these benefits. Just last week, a Monroe cheesemaker was bought out by a company that will use the error-ridden E-Verify system to confirm the immigration status of its employees. In response, dozens of workers walked out in protest of what this could mean for immigrant workers.

Velasquez and Von Ruden share their advice for supporting immigrant workers, like supporting policy changes that keep more family farms in operation and creating pathways to citizenship for immigrant workers that aren’t tied to employment. 

Alba Velasquez leads the Los Angeles Food Policy Council (LAFPC) as the Executive Director, bringing a robust background in program leadership and food justice advocacy. Joining LAFPC in 2017, she has significantly contributed to the growth and impact of the Healthy Neighborhood Market Network program and has played a pivotal role in strategic partnership development. Alba served as the Interim Executive Director and led the team through a leadership shift in 2020. Prior to LAFPC, Alba managed key initiatives at the National Health Foundation and contributed to urban agriculture research at UCLA. Holding a BA in Sociology from UC Santa Barbara and a Master’s in Urban Regional Planning from UCLA, her expertise is grounded in her personal experiences as a Salvadoran refugee and community advocate, driving her commitment to creating equitable and sustainable food systems.

Wisconsin Farmers Union President Darin Von Ruden has served as the organization’s District 5 director since 2008, representing Crawford, Grant, Green, Iowa, Lafayette, Richland, Rock, and Vernon counties. He also leads the WFU Foundation Board of Directors, the WFU Service Association, and serves as secretary on the National Farmers Union Board of Directors. Von Ruden and his wife, JoAnn, live in Westby. In the last several years, Von Ruden transitioned the farm to the fourth generation, when son Brett purchased the machinery and 50-cow dairy herd.

Featured image of a small family farm in Wisconsin. 

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