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lifegoesonevenifeverybodyisgone · 2 months ago

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THE Joe Character Analysis. Part 3: A Brief Socioeconomic Background of Haight Street (Prelude to Portrayals of Masculinity)

How does Bluepoch create its characters? What is possibly the process or the mindset behind J's creation? How does this show in his character and how he is viewed?

I briefly touched upon the Greaser subculture, Mexican heritage, and other aspects of culture in the earlier parts. Although it gives context to the different sides of J, it is only a slice of the bigger pie: the social, cultural, and historical background of the 90s in California.

These aspects like sociocultural influences, history, and societal conflicts are the basis for Bluepoch's characters. In an interview conducted by Automaton earlier this year, Bluepoch reveals how they created their first character (Druvis III) and their thought process:

Now that we know their process, good questions to ask regarding our characters are: "What time and place does the story take place?", "What kind of conflict was occurring during that time?", "What hopes do characters have during that time period?", and "What are the mystical influences that affect the arcanists?".

So if that is the case, what historical context is J part of?

From what we know, 2.0 takes place in San Francisco, California, United States during the 1990s (specifically in Haight Street). This period was characterized by the United States becoming more of a global power after the dissolution of the USSR, great economic prosperity and peace, vast improvements in technology, and a revival of 70s culture (because all fashion and trends have a 20-year interval before being revived).

The world became increasingly connected with the creation of the GPS, the proliferation of the internet, and increased immigration. Cultural icons that came from the 70s are found all over 2.0 whether it be Disco, the Age of Aquarius, iconic sitcoms, Greasers, arcades, and the queer clubbing scene.

This prosperity occurred after the 1980s, were a period of decreased volatility and positive growth began.

This period of prosperity and growth in America is what we economists call the Great Moderation.

US inflation was low and stable while recessions were mild. The former governor of the Federal Bank Reserve (Governor Barnanke) atttributed it to structural change in the economy, improved economic policies, and good ol' luck. The structural changes were most likely the increased openess to trade, advances in the financial system due to computers, and deregulation.

Another influence that can be seen in the 2.0 event is immigration. During the 20th century, immigration laws greatly changed the American demographic. Maybe it could be attributed to the Immigration Act of 1990 which further removed the barriers for entry in America but I have a hunch that the Mexican immigration where J's ancestors came a little earlier, likely coming to America during or after WWII.

During 1942, the US implemented the Mexican Farm Labor Program AKA the Bracero Program. To address the agricultural work shortage brought about by WWII, the US permitted millions of Mexican men to work under short-term labor contracts in America. Most of them ended up working in San Francisco's Bay Area (where Haight Street takes place).

The influx of Mexican workers provided America with cheap labor in order to feed its people but the influx of undocumented migrants in the 50s led to a mass deportation of 1.1 million workers back to Mexico via Operation Wetback. This happened at the same time while the Bracero Program was ongoing causing the Immigration Bureau and Border Patrol to do military round-ups to legal workers even to the point of deporting US citizens with Mexican ancestry.

Finally, around the 90s and where 2.0 event takes place, the Immigration Act of 1990 was passed bringing in a new wave of immigrants. The presence of immigrants have often been mentioned in the event like the sizable Chinese diaspora, Mr. Tang, J's doctor, and the crowd of immigrants that J sponsored.

Despite the increase of wealth in California due to being the home of the Silicon Valley, the hub of innovations, the expanded global trade, and the booming retail industry, a part of the population that contributed to making that wealth were unable to partake in it. The immigrants of San Francisco left their countries in search for a better life, the American Dream that promises that if you work hard enough you can achieve anything. But that is not often the case...

The setting of the 2.0 story is Haight Street, a part of the Haight-Ashbury district, a district adjacent to the Golden Gate Park. The street was particularly famous for the hippie counterculture in the 60s. Thousands of American youth flocked to Haight Street in the event called "Summer of Love".

The youthful idealism eventually turned sour and the hippies left for the rural areas. Pyschedelic drugs were replaced by harder and more dangerous drugs like heroin which caused medical issues to the population. By the late 60s and the early 70s, property values fell and violent crime rose. Haight Street quickly gained the reputation of being a dangerous and violent place.

Around the 70s, plans were made to restore Haight-Ashbury. A new wave of homeowners and residents restored Victorian/Edwardian houses and cleaned up the city. The crime rates eventually dropped. Due to the wave of new homeowners who renovated the old houses, the prices of housing went up which displaced a lot of the low-income folk like the black, senior citizen, and hippies.

There was a great concern regarding gentrification and displacement. Although the newcomers were also diverse (a local doctor estimating that 25% of them were gay), there was a fear that the previous inhabitants would be displaced. In the 80s, commercial establishments and higher priced housing began to emerge. The struggles on who gets to live in the ever evolving city was shown in J's character story.

J's character story deals with the displacement, inequality, and the gentrification of Haight Street that was occuring during the time. The main conflict was the creation of a commercial center that kicked many local businesses out through coercion. J busted the gang behind this and guaranteed the freedom of his homeless and immigrant friends. He ended up being their sponsor and helping the folks find jobs.

Since Haight Street was amongst one of those migrant communities where a lot of lower-class people lived, it is most likely that a good amount of people living there were either immigrants (especially Chinese or Mexican), Arcanists, downtrodden folks, or all of three. Looking back at the characters, Mercuria came from an orphanage while J was also an orphan who survived by working for a Chinese immigrant.

Since the character-making of Bluepoch involves looking at the cultural context and making a character out of it, I can infer that Pioneer represents the Great Moderation, especially since he is an Awakened and he sprung to life due to this economic movement.

Mercuria represents the ideals of the Age of Aquarius and the famous hippie counterculture, who is a freedom-loving disco dancer while also working as a diviner.

J, on the other hand, might have been inspired by the 90s kids who took inspiration in the 70s revival (since he loves arcades, knows a little bit of disco, and watches old sitcoms) but he can also be inspired by a revival of a revival: the 50s. During the 70s, there was also a revival of an era that occurred 20 years prior: the Greasers of the 50s.

He also represents the lower class men at the time who were most likely left out in the city's progress. The fact that he came from a formerly prominent Wayland family (who lost prominence after the war) but now has to work hard to survive is reminiscent of Haight Street itself (a magnificent and dignified neighborhood that lost its glamour and became a place of the lower class).

As stated in Part 1, Greasers were a subculture that formed in the 50s and were often composed of Italian-American and Latin-American (most commonly Mexican) lower-class youth who felt left out from the prosperity of the post-war economic boom. They shared an interest in riding motorcycles (since they often worked in mechanic jobs like J's friend Hollick), the affordable aesthetic of the working man, and the community of marginalized olive-skinned ethnic minorities (like those of the Mediterranean and Mexicans).

In the context of the 90s, J's identification with the Greaser subculture goes beyond the 70s revival or his fondness for old-fashioned stuff. It was a way to express himself regardless of his social class, a shared identity. It was an identification with the men who made the most with what they had, with men like him who felt hope for a better future but also felt frustated to be left out from it.

With aesthetics and historical context, the Greaser subculture elicited stereotypes like being urban, sexual, cool, rebellious, and exhibiting lower-class masculinity. Fittingly enough, I have seen many people think of him that way, both in the game and the fandom, so let's dissect that.

Link to the Ultimate Joe Directory:

https://www.tumblr.com/lifegoesonevenifeverybodyisgone/771822786973958144/the-ultimate-joe-directory?source=share

SOURCES:

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/g/great-moderation.asp

https://www.federalreserve.gov/boarddocs/speeches/2004/20040220/

https://guides.loc.gov/latinx-civil-rights/bracero-program

https://californialocal.com/localnews/statewide/ca/article/show/5992-california-immigration-history-immigrants/

https://immigrationhistory.org/item/operation-wetback/

https://www.foundsf.org/index.php?title=Naming_of_Haight_Street%2C_Part_4%3A_The_Last_Haight_Standing

https://www.britannica.com/place/Haight-Ashbury

https://www.jstor.org/stable/24040253

#reverse 1999 #j reverse 1999 #mercuria reverse 1999 #pioneer reverse 1999 #floor it! to the golden city #character analysis #this post took me more research than I expected #THE joe character analysis

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justinspoliticalcorner · 5 months ago

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Greg Sargent at TNR:

There are still nearly two months to go before Donald Trump assumes the presidency again, but Republicans or GOP-adjacent industries have already begun to admit out loud that some of his most important policy promises could prove disastrous in their parts of the country. These folks don’t say this too directly, out of fear of offending the MAGA God King. Instead, they suggest gingerly that a slight rethink might be in order. But unpack what they’re saying, and you’ll see that they’re in effect acknowledging that some of Trump’s biggest campaign promises were basically scams.

In Georgia, for instance, some local Republicans are openly worried about Trump’s threat to roll back President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act. The IRA is pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into incentives for the manufacture and purchase of green energy technologies, from electric vehicles to batteries to solar power. Trump endlessly derided this as the “green new scam” and pledged to repeal all uncommitted funds. But now The New York Times reports that Trump supporters like state Representative Beth Camp fear that repeal could destroy jobs related to new investments in green manufacturing plants in the state. Camp worries that this could leave factories in Georgia “sitting empty.” You heard that right: This Republican is declaring that Trump’s threatened actions could leave factories sitting empty.

[...]

Something similar is also already happening with Trump’s threat to deport millions of undocumented immigrants. Reuters reports that agriculture interests, which are heavily concentrated in GOP areas, are urging the incoming Trump administration to refrain from removing untold numbers of migrants working throughout the food supply chain, including in farming, dairy, and meatpacking.

Notably, GOP Representative John Duarte, who just lost his seat in the elections, explicitly tells Reuters that farming interests in his California district depend on undocumented immigrants—and that Trump should exempt many from removal. Duarte and industry representatives want more avenues created for migrants to work here legally—the precise opposite of what Trump promised. Now over to Texas. NPR reports that various industries there fear that mass deportations could cripple them, particularly in construction, where nearly 300,000 undocumented immigrants toiled as of 2022. Those workers enable the state to keep growing despite a native population that isn’t supplying a large enough workforce. Local analysts and executives want Trump to refrain from removing all these people or create new ways for them to work here legally. Even the Republican mayor of McKinney, Texas, is loudly sounding the alarm.

Meanwhile, back in Georgia, Trump’s threat of mass deportations is awakening new awareness that undocumented immigrants drive industries like construction, landscaping, and agriculture, reports The Wall Street Journal. In Dalton, a town that backed Trump, fear is spreading that removals could “upend its economy and workforce.” At this point, someone will argue that all this confirms Trump’s arguments—that these industries and their representatives merely fear losing cheap migrant labor that enables them to avoid paying Americans higher wages. When JD Vance and Trump pushed their lie about Haitians eating pets in Springfield, Ohio, Vance insisted that he opposed the Haitian influx into Midwestern towns because they’re undercutting U.S. workers. But all these disparate examples of Republicans and GOP areas lamenting coming mass deportations suggest an alternate story, one detailed well by the Times’ Lydia DePillis. In the MAGA worldview, a large reserve of untapped native-born Americans in prime working age are languishing in joblessness throughout Trump country—and will stream into all these industries once migrants are removed en masse, boosting wages.

But DePillis documents that things like poor health and disability are more important drivers of unemployment among this subset of non-college working-age men. Besides, migrants living and working here don’t just perform labor that Americans will not. They also consume and boost demand, creating more jobs. As Paul Krugman puts it, in all these ways, migrant laborers are “complements” to U.S. workers. Importantly, that’s the argument that these Republicans and industries in GOP areas are really making when they lament mass deportations: Migrant labor isn’t displacing U.S. workers; it’s helping drive our post-Covid recovery and growth. This directly challenges Trump’s zero-sum worldview.

[...] Here’s another possibility: In the end, Trump’s deportation forces may selectively spare certain localities and industries from mass removals. Trump’s incoming “border czar,” Tom Homan, suggests this won’t happen. But a hallmark of MAGA is corruptly selective governance in the interests of MAGA nation and expressly against those who are designated MAGA’s enemies, U.S. citizens included. One can see mass deportations becoming a selective tool, in which blue localities are targeted for high-profile raids—even as Trump triumphantly rants that they are cesspools of “migrant crime” that he is pacifying with military-style force—while GOP-connected industries and Trump-allied Republicans tacitly secure some forbearance.

Donald Trump’s threats to green energy initiatives and resistance to his mass deportation proposals are facing headwinds against him, even from local Republicans who fear losses of jobs in their communities.

Even if Trump does get to implement his mass deportation policy, he’ll likely create several exemption carveouts (mainly for industries likely to favor him) and use selective enforcement (light touch for red states, heavy and punitive for blue states).

#Donald Trump #Mass Deportations #Immigration #Economy #Inflation Reduction Act #Undocumented Immigrants

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mariacallous · 4 days ago

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On an isolated farm at the outer reaches of a fascist empire, a mid-level government toady interrogates his victims. Under the guise of conducting a government census, he’s sniffing out undocumented immigrants. When he finds one, he pounces, cornering a young migrant worker and attempting to coerce her into sleeping with him. When she refuses, he gets violent.

It’s a scene that feels familiar in America today, where ICE agents are rounding up immigrants (and sometimes even citizens) with disturbing impunity. But in this case, the farm isn’t in the US or even on Earth. Instead, it’s a scene from the second and final season of Andor, the critically acclaimed Star Wars show that chronicles the rise of the Rebel Alliance under the creeping shadow of the Galactic Empire.

If watching the new season of Andor makes you think of America’s current lurch toward fascism, that’s likely not a coincidence. In fact, it’s arguably the point of Star Wars in the first place. Throughout the franchise’s 47-year history, the Empire has served as a stand-in for everything from the United States during the Vietnam War to ancient Rome in the age of Julius Caesar. But while the Empire may be infinitely adaptable as a metaphor for fascism, Andor notably seems to represent the first time since Disney purchased Lucasfilm for $4 billion that this metaphor is being pointed back at the US.

“The Empire is both incredibly stable and incredibly flexible as an entity to hang metaphors on,” says Chris Kempshall, a historian and the author of The History and Politics of Star Wars. “We, the audience, understand that the Empire is evil, so that doesn’t need to be explained to us. But the details of the Empire have changed a lot over time to adapt to these changes in real-world politics.”

Until now, the Disney era of Star Wars has been defined by toothless politics; in Episode VII—The Force Awakens, the bad guys dress and act like generic Nazis, a cartoonish shortcut that establishes them as evil without attempting to say anything deeper about modern imperialism. In general, the sequel trilogy is too busy wrestling with the meaning of Star Wars itself to say anything potent about American politics, and when Disney’s Lucasfilm does take more ambitious narrative swings, like with The Acolyte, it has failed to escape the gravity of corporate demands and a small, loud, toxic fandom determined to drag the franchise to the right both politically and culturally.

That’s why Andor feels like such a rare victory for Star Wars. Not only is it the best thing to come out of the franchise in years (as many critics have argued), but it’s Lucasfilm’s most blatant attempt to get back to the type of biting political commentary that defined its pre-Disney era. Andor’s first season may have laid the groundwork with careful character development and world-building, but Season 2 makes good on that promise to deliver something painfully relevant at a time when many Americans are reckoning with the fact that the democracy we once thought was inextinguishable is seemingly crumbling right in front of us.

In the first three episodes of Andor Season 2, which started streaming on Disney+ on April 22, one of the show’s many interlocking plotlines takes us to Mina-Rau, an agricultural planet on the outer rim of the Star Wars galaxy, where a group of rebel soldiers are posing as freelance mechanics. The group includes Bix (Adria Arjona), a wanted fugitive hiding out on Mina-Rau without the necessary paperwork. So when a cadre of Imperial soldiers arrives to carry out an unannounced “supply census,” Bix is worried.

“If they’re checking visas, it’s a problem,” she says.

“Look, they need the grain,” a local farmer replies. “They know we need help, and they know everyone isn’t legal. How hard they look, what they do—it’s been 10 years since the last audit, nobody’s happy.”

In the very next episode, he’ll betray the rebels to the Empire, a reminder of just how difficult it can be to do the right thing in the face of authoritarian power.

For Kempshall, Andor’s greatest innovation is the way it exposes the “grassroots elements of fascism.” We all know that Palaptine is evil, but as the series makes clear, it’s the ordinary people just doing their jobs—filing paperwork and enforcing security—who make that evil possible in the first place.

“These are the ones who’ll kick your door in at 3 am or enforce changing laws,” he says. “They’re the real face of the Empire. And it looks normal and banal and boring and therefore terrifying. It’s the reality of increasing oppression.”

Star Wars’ tradition of highlighting American imperialism dates back to its earliest days.

Before he created Star Wars, Lucas was supposed to direct Apocalypse Now for his friend, Oscar-winning director Francis Ford Coppola. But after the film fell into development hell and he dropped out, Lucas took that Vietnam War setting and transported it into space, turning the Viet Cong into the Rebel Alliance, a ragtag army of freedom fighters engaged in guerrilla warfare against a heavily armed, genocidal empire.

And that’s just what made it into the final version of the film.

“In the earliest drafts for what would become Star Wars, Lucas was pretty explicit about how the Empire was meant to portray an America which had fallen into fascism,” Kempshall says.

When Lucas returned to the Star Wars galaxy after a 16-year break to helm the prequel trilogy, he had a different metaphor in mind. Released in 1999, a full year before George W. Bush became president, Star Wars: Episode I—The Phantom Menace is an allegory for how democracies collapse into dictatorship and willingly cede power to a strongman, with parallels to everyone from Julius Caesar to Napoleon Bonaparte. (Lucas’ then-yawn-inducing obsession with trade tariffs may have inadvertently also predicted our current economic crisis.)

But by the time the prequels came to an end with Revenge of the Sith (2005), Lucas had turned his attention to President Bush. Near the end of the movie, a corrupted Anakin Skywalker turns to his old friend Obi-Wan Kenobi and shouts, “If you’re not with me, you’re my enemy,” an unsubtle reference to the Iraq War that instantly drew comparisons to Bush’s post-9/11 threat: “Either you are with us or you are with the terrorists.”

After the poorly reviewed sequels, Lucas stepped back from Star Wars for another few decades before ultimately selling the franchise to Disney. The company’s much-hyped relaunch picked up the Skywalker Saga, 30 years after Return of the Jedi (1983). In 2015’s The Force Awakens, the remnants of the Empire have reformed into the First Order, which takes on distinctly Nazi attributes with its billowing red flags and angry, shouting leaders.

For Kempshall, the reason for this shift toward a more generic Nazi metaphor has less to do with politics and more to do with the modern cultural zeitgeist.

“Vietnam isn’t a major pop culture touchstone anymore,” he says. “So the Empire likely needed to evolve to transmit a level of evil.”

That was certainly true in 2015, a year before Donald Trump became president, but a decade later, the zeitgeist has changed again. Like it did in the 1970s under Richard Nixon or the early 2000s under Bush, America is lurching toward fascism. And, in a surprising return to form, Star Wars is here to reflect that political reality back at us.

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trump47actions · 3 months ago

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Here are some of the orders Mr. Trump signed on his first day in office:

Federal Work Force

Freeze federal hiring, except for members of the military or “positions related to immigration enforcement, national security, or public safety.”

Restore a category of federal workers known as Schedule F, which would lack the same job protections enjoyed by career civil servants.

Halt new federal rules from going into effect before Trump administration appointees can review them.

Review the investigative actions of the Biden administration, “to correct past misconduct by the federal government related to the weaponization of law enforcement and the weaponization of the intelligence community.”

Grant top secret security clearances to White House staff without going through traditional vetting procedures.

End remote work policies and order federal workers back to the office full time.

Immigration and the Border

Bar asylum for people newly arriving at the southern border.

Move to end birthright citizenship, which is guaranteed by the 14th Amendment, for the children of undocumented immigrants. The president cannot change the Constitution on his own, so it is not yet clear how Mr. Trump plans to withhold the benefits of citizenship to a group of people born in the United States. Any move is all but certain to be challenged in court.

Suspend the Refugee Admissions Program “until such time as the further entry into the United States of refugees aligns with the interests of the United States.”

Declare migrant crossings along the U.S.-Mexico border to be a national emergency, allowing Mr. Trump to unilaterally unlock federal funding for border wall construction, without approval from Congress, for stricter enforcement efforts.

Resume a policy requiring people seeking asylum to wait in Mexico while an immigration judge considers their cases.

Consider designating cartels as “foreign terrorist organizations.”

Gender and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Initiatives

Terminate D.E.I. programs across the federal government.

Recognize two sexes: male and female.

Remove protections for transgender people in federal prisons.

Tariffs and Trade

Direct federal agencies to begin an investigation into trade practices, including persistent trade deficits and unfair currency practices, as well as examine flows of migrants and drugs from Canada, China and Mexico to the United States.

Assess China’s compliance with a trade deal Mr. Trump signed in 2020, as well as the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which Trump signed in 2020 to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Order the government to assess the feasibility of creating an “External Revenue Service” to collect tariffs and duties.

Carry out a full review of the U.S. industrial and manufacturing base to assess whether further national security-related tariffs are warranted.

Energy and the Environment

Withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement, the pact among almost all nations to fight climate change.

Declare a national energy emergency, a first in U.S. history, which could unlock new powers to suspend certain environmental rules or expedite permitting of certain mining projects.

Attempt to reverse Mr. Biden’s ban on offshore drilling for 625 million acres of federal waters.

Begin the repeal of Biden-era regulations on tailpipe pollution from cars and light trucks, which have encouraged automakers to manufacture more electric vehicles.

Roll back energy-efficiency regulations for dishwashers, shower heads and gas stoves.

Open the Alaska wilderness to more oil and gas drilling.

Restart reviews of new export terminals for liquefied natural gas, something the Biden administration had paused.

Halt the leasing of federal waters for offshore wind farms.

Eliminate environmental justice programs across the government, which are aimed at protecting poor communities from excess pollution.

Review all federal regulations that impose an “undue burden” on the development or use of a variety of energy sources, particularly coal, oil, natural gas, nuclear power, hydropower and biofuels.

TikTok ban

Consult federal agencies on any national security risks posed by the social media platform, then “pursue a resolution that protects national security while saving a platform used by 170 million Americans.” Mr. Trump ordered his attorney general not to enforce a law that banned the site for 75 days to give the Trump administration “an opportunity to determine the appropriate course forward.”

Other

Withdraw from the World Health Organization.

Rename Mount Denali and the Gulf of Mexico.

Ensure that states carrying out the death penalty have a “sufficient supply” of lethal injection drugs.

Fly the American flag at full-staff on Monday and on future Inauguration Days.

Implement the Department of Government Efficiency, the Elon Musk-led cost-cutting initiative.

Revoke security clearances for 51 signers of a letter suggesting that the contents of Hunter Biden’s laptop could be Russian disinformation.

#executive orders #day 1

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beardedmrbean · 10 months ago

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Dozens of Indian farm labourers have been freed from slave-like working conditions in northern Italy, police have said.

The 33 workers were lured to Italy on the promise of jobs and a better future by two fellow Indian nationals, police say.

But instead, they were allegedly forced to work more than 10 hours a day, seven days a week for a tiny wage which was used to pay off debts to the alleged gangmasters.

The two men - who were found with approximately $545,300 (£420,000) - have been arrested.

The exploitation of farmhands – both Italian and migrant - in Italy is a well-known issue. Thousands of people work in fields, vineyards and greenhouses dotted across the country, often without contracts and in highly dangerous conditions.

Just last month, an Indian fruit picker died after his arm was severed in a work accident.

The man had allegedly been left on the side of the road following the accident, which also left his legs crushed.

His employer is now under investigation for criminal negligence and manslaughter.

The 33 men rescued by police in the Province of Verona had paid €17,000 ($18,554, £14,293) or 1.5m rupees each in return for seasonal work permits and jobs, according to a police statement sent to the BBC.

To raise the funds, police said, some pawned their family assets, while others borrowed the money from their employers.

But they were only paid €4 per hour for their 10 to 12-hour days, with that sum settling any debt owed.

Their passports were also confiscated as soon as they arrived in Italy and they were banned from leaving their "dilapidated" apartments.

"Every morning, the workers piled into vehicles covered in tarpaulin where they hid among boxes of vegetables until they reached the Verona countryside for work," the police statement said.

Searches of their apartments showed the workers were "forced to live in precarious and degrading conditions" and "in total violation of health and hygiene regulations", it added.

The rescued workers have received their passports back and are being helped by social services and a migration organisation to relocate to safer housing and working conditions.

The two alleged gangmasters are now facing charges related to exploitation and slavery, police told Reuters news agency.

Undocumented labourers across Italy are often subject to a system known as “caporalato” – a gangmaster system which sees middlemen illegally hiring labourers who are then forced to work for very low salaries. Even workers with regular papers are often paid well below the legal wage.

Almost a quarter of the agricultural workforce in Italy in 2018 was employed under this method, according to a study by the Italian National Institute of Statistics. The practice also affects workers in the service industry and building sectors.

It was outlawed in Italy in 2016 after an Italian woman died of a heart attack after working 12-hour shifts picking and sorting grapes, for which she was paid €27 a day.

#nunyas news #some don is about to be grumpy I bet

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cleoselene · 1 year ago

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since immigrant scare shit is going on in the media, would like to share some information I learned in my graduate-level immigration class, taught by Alejandro Portes, one of the foremost immigration scholars in the nation, on staff at Princeton and UM:

-the idea that Trump pushes that "they're not sending their best" is about the most false thing you can say about immigrants. Think about it. A lot of these people are going through extraordinary turmoil, expense, and effort to move. Much more than most of us would be willing to go through. The people who do this by nature are highly motivated and thus tend to be very hardworking, and smart if not educated (though many of them are highly educated, too!). Think about how much it sucks to move. Think about doing that across countries, against a tide of legal red tape, political hatred, and massive expense. It's a lot.

-immigrant enclaves tend to be low in crime. Immigrants are not highly criminal people, no matter what Republicans are trying to tell you. In fact, they are often more careful about obeying the law because they are either not citizens and thus at risk for deportation, or highly aware that they are representing their culture/people.

-in fact, immigrant enclaves are so effective at keeping down crime that studies have shown that the only time people from these families tend to be more prone to crime is after they have assimilated, often the second or third generation, and have had their enclaves eroded and pushed into other low-income, high crime areas. That is to say: they tend to only become criminal when or if they learn it from us.

-the US economy is in a boom period right now. Everywhere is hiring. We NEED labor. We are sort of unique in this globally right now: other economies did not land as softly as the United States' after the pandemic, we are looking at full employment at the moment, rising wages, and lowering inflation. People are coming to America because the demands of global capitalism have pulled them here. This is why migration happens in general. Global capitalism is like a wind, and it pulls people where the labor is needed. We need farm workers, especially, which, if you're not aware, if often undocumented immigrant labor. You mad about the price of groceries? Well, you can't be mad about migrants, then. You don't get to be mad about both and think the problem will solve itself. Throughout history, labor has been pulled to a country where it's needed, whether by voluntary immigration, incentivized immigration, or forced immigration (the example here would be American slavery. These people were forced to immigrate). In the end, the reasoning is always about making money. If we didn't need labor, they'd go somewhere else.

#immigration

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ndfan3 · 1 year ago

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The Strange Message in the Parchment, The Nancy Drew Mystery Stories #54 (1977)

One of the more recent titles in the Mystery Stories series, this tale involves Nancy and her friends in yet another fight against kidnappers and extortionists. The story kicks off with a sheep farmer receiving a strange telephone message instructing him to decipher the writing on some paintings on parchment he bought as a curiosity to “right a great wrong”. His daughter, Junie, contacts Nancy and asks the young detective to help find out what the message and its alleged “great wrong” might mean. She Junie, commence their investigations and soon find themselves up against a suspicious and dangerous Italian named Sal Rocco, possibly involved in trafficking undocumented migrants to local farms. While investigating this angle the girls rescue an abused child, Tony, who has been staying with his uncle Rocco and threaten the man with the police.

Nancy then calls in the assistance of Bess and George and together the group of young women set out to solve the mystery of the parchments and capture the villain behind the mysterious goings on. They soon establish Tony’s mother in Italy is a talented artist who put together the paintings on the parchment before Sal stole them and abducted Tony. He now runs a fake union scam amongst the migrant workers. This leads to the girls being kidnapped and tied up by Ricco’s hired muscle, but they manage to escape and then turn the workers against the exploiter leading him to confess and surrender to Nancy and her friends in order to get them to summon the police to protect him.

Despite the Italian stereotypes, this is a curiously modern tale given our current vexed debates about illegal migration and the role of organised crime in trafficking. Not the best Nancy novel, but worth checking out.

#nancy drew #woman detective #mystery #adventure #girl detective #capture

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benjaminrussell · 1 year ago

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Welcome To The Circus

Fandom: 911 Lone Star Relationship: Nancy/Mateo, Nancy&TK&Tim Rating: Gen WC: 1.7k

Summary: A call turns dangerous for Mateo, but while he's trapped he makes a new friend.

Nancy watched from the sidelines as Mateo entered one of the farm outbuildings, decked out head to toe in protective gear in deference to the fact that it was on fire. Judd followed him in, and then Nancy lost sight of them both. The 126 had been called to a farm fire, but on arrival, they’d realised that the owner was missing, which was why the firefighters were searching the various buildings in case he was unconscious somewhere. There was a man who was likely an undocumented migrant worker, who was clearly scared of something, but even Mateo talking to him in Spanish hadn’t gotten any answers out of him. Nancy and TK had given him a once over, but he didn’t seem hurt, so they’d then just left him be. Now they were just waiting for an indication they were needed, whether that be for the owner when he was finally found, or (hopefully not) for one of the crew.

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#911 lone star #nancy gillian #mateo chavez #tk strand #tim rosewater #911 lone star fanfiction

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nursingwriter · 16 days ago

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Health of Farm Workers Farm workers who are migrant and seasonal are an important and integral part of the American agricultural enterprise and industry. According to recent figures there are more than three million farm workers who earn their livelihood through migrant or seasonal farm labor. (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) However, the general situation and conditions of these workers and the many associated variables indicate that these hired workers are subject to often severe health challenges. These challenges are related not only to the nature of their work but to other factors and variables as well, such as poverty and working arrangements that can have a significant impact on their health and accessibility to health coverage and care. (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) Research and studies reveal some alarming and disconcerting facts and figures with regard to hired farm workers in United States. Villarejo in his study entitled the Health of U.S. Hired Farm Hands (2003), states that, " Despite a recent surge in knowledge about U.S. hired farm workers, little is known about the health of this population." (Villarejo, 175) as Villarejo and others state, the problem of migrating farm workers from a health perspective has been recognized as a serious concern by health authorities and governmental agencies for many years. The definition of migrant farm workers is also an important aspect in the determination of the various factors affecting health. The Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act (MSAWPA), recognizes two classes of farm worker; namely, migrant agricultural workers and seasonal agricultural workers. A migrant agricultural worker is defined as, "…an individual who is employed in agricultural employment of a seasonal or other temporary nature, and is required to be absent overnight from his permanent place of residence." (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) a seasonal agricultural worker refers to "…an individual who is employed in agricultural employment of a seasonal or other temporary nature and is not required to be absent overnight from his permanent place of residence…" (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) 2. The present health situation 2.1. Statistics and demographics The population of farm workers that fall under the rubric of "hired workers" is seen as a special population and is "…associated with a & #8230;combination of higher than average occupational risk exposure as well as poorer than average health status." (Villarejo 175) According to Villarejo, " Demographic data shows that these workers are mostly Mexican immigrant or migrant males, and nearly two-thirds live in poverty." (Villarejo, 175) Furthermore, the study by Villarejo states that approximately half of these workers are undocumented, which obviously has implications in terms of health provisions and coverage. Villarejo goes on to state that the estimated number or hired workers was half a million in 1980, but more recent statistics indicate a much higher figure of three million workers who "… earn their living through migrant and seasonal farm labor, traveling the nation to support an agricultural industry which yielded $28 billion in fruit and vegetable business in 2001 alone." (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) The national Agricultural Workers Survey ( NAWS) found that approximately eighty percent of these workers were born in Mexico or Central America and. More importantly, two thirds of these workers live in relative poverty. (Villarejo, 176) Half of these workers earn less than $10, 000 per year. Another source states that in 2000 the median income for migrant and seasonal farm workers was $6,250, compared to $42,000 for U.S. workers. (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) An important fact is that of the total number of migratory workers in the United States more than fifty percent are without any immigration authority. This again brings to bear the relevance of the non-documented works in relation to health benefits and provisions. Another demographic factor that has bearing on health related issues is that the NAWS found that almost all of these workers are from outside of U.S. (Villarejo 176) a report by the National Center for Farmworker health ( NCFH) states that, …it is estimated that 85% of all migrant workers are minorities, of whom most are Hispanic (including Mexican-Americans as well as Mexicans, Puerto Ricans, Cubans, and workers from Central and South America). The migrant population also includes Black/African-Americans, Jamaicans, Haitians, Laotians, Thais, and other racial and ethnic minorities. (Overview of America's Farmworkers) This diversity means that problems of culture, language and communication also affect health issues and access to care. An important statistic is that only five percent of hired workers who perform seasonal agricultural serves reported having personal health insurance…" (Villarejo, 177) More than fifty percent stated that they did not any for of worker compensation insurance. In essence, the demographics indicated a population with a comparatively low socio-economic status, with high health risks. If one includes the fact that many of these workers are illegal in the United States, this complicates and exacerbates the issue of health provision and care for these workers and their families. On a more positive note, Villarejo also points out that the demographics also suggest that the majority of hired farm workers are young. They will therefore be less prone to age-related health issues. These and other aspects will be elaborated on in terms of heath care in the following discussion. 2.2 Morality rates, diseases and access to health benefits 2.2.1. Mortality Studies show that these workers are at high risk from a wide range of different illnesses and health hazards. According to one review, "… while agriculture-related employment comprised only 2% of overall employment, agricultural and livestock-related production, along with agricultural services, comprised 13% of all occupational deaths over a 1994 ?1999 time period." (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) Research also shows that there is a 'disproportionately high' level of mortality for a number of health risks that are particularly related to this demographic. These include death from work related injuries as well as from diseases such as tuberculosis, hypertension and cirrhosis. (Villarejo, 180) There is a general consensus among researchers that, "….workers in agriculture run at least twice the risk of dying on the job as workers in other sectors & #8230;" (ILO warns on farm safety Agriculture mortality rates remain high Pesticides pose major health risks to global workforce) This is a view that applies not only to American farm workers but also to workers in other regions of the world as well. Among some of the reasons given for this situation are "…inadequate education, training and safety systems." (ILO warns on farm safety Agriculture mortality rates remain high Pesticides pose major health risks to global workforce) the International Labor Organization ( ILO) states that; …in developed countries such as Australia, Canada and the United States agriculture ranks consistently among the most hazardous industries. In the U.S., for example, farmers and farm workers comprise only 3% of the workforce, but they account for nearly 8% of all work-related accidents. In Italy 9.7% of workers are in agricultural production, but they account for 28.7% of accidents. (ILO warns on farm safety Agriculture mortality rates remain high Pesticides pose major health risks to global workforce) Many studies support the view that mortality is much higher in this demographic. For example, one report emphasizes that fact that migrant workers, as well as their families, experience a lower level of general health in comparison to the general population. (Health Problems among Migrant Farmworkers' Children in the U.S. ERIC Digest.) in this regard the "…infant mortality rate among migrants is 125% higher than the general population, and the life expectancy of migrant farmworkers is 49 years in contrast to the nation's average of 75 years." (Health Problems among Migrant Farmworkers' Children in the U.S. ERIC Digest.) 2.2.2. Disease and general health risks The general health risks that these workers face can be the result of various aspects of their occupation and lifestyle; such as work related accidents, or exposure to chemicals, and can include increased rates of chronic conditions, such as musculoskeletal injuries, which can lead to serious disabilities, and fatalities. "More than 40% of all workers reported leaving or changing jobs as a result of chronic pain." (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) Among the many health conditions that are reported as being comparatively high in this demographic are respiratory illnesses such as asthma and bronchitis, as well as skin problems. (Health Problems among Migrant Farmworkers' Children in the U.S. ERIC Digest) Another aspect that is often noted in the literature is the risk of contracting infectious diseases, such as tuberculosis; as well as diseases that can be related to living in squalid and unsanitary conditions. This is evident for studies that show that, "Between 1984 and 1985, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) conducted a survey of tuberculosis (TB) cases reported in 29 states, and showed that farm workers accounted for more than 5% of all TB cases."(Tuberculosis and migrant farm workers) There have also been reports which indicate a high incidence of cancer among farm workers. According to a study by the National Cancer Institute it was found that farm workers who were exposed to chemical herbicides were six times more likely to contact cancer then those who were not exposed. This is related to the fact that the use of pesticides is very poorly regulated. (Protect Farm Worker's Health) the use of pesticides has become an area of research and concern by the health authorities. This aspect has been well documented but experts are of the opinion that there are "...insufficient studies examining the effects of multiple pesticide exposure." (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) 2.2.3. Access to health benefits and care The general consensus from the literature on the subject is that migrant and seasonal farm workers and their families are "…overwhelmingly uninsured." (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) the 2005 study of the health of migrant farm works by Rosenbaum and Shin indicates that in 2000, "…85% of migrant and seasonal farm workers were uninsured, compared to 37% of low-income adults nationally." (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) the study also found that both migrant and seasonal farm workers had less access to health care than other low-income groups. This fact is emphasized by the finding that only 42% of women in farmworker families reported seeking early prenatal care compared to over three-quarters nationally. (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) This negative picture also applies to the children of the workers and as many as one out of every ten had no medical or health insurance. (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) Villarejo summarizes the situation as follows: "…only a very small proportion of hired farm workers, in the range of 5% to 11% of the total, have health insurance provide by their employer" and " only a few…have been able to obtain Medicaid to other government needs-based health insurance coverage, despite the fact that their poverty would other wise qualify them." (Villarejo, 181) On the other side of the coin it has been found that female farm workers are on some instances better provided for. As Villajero points out, "…programs targeting women farm workers, such as WIC or & #8230;emergency MediCal, are more effective in helping them obtain needed services." (Villarejo, 175) Hired farm workers are also provided for to a certain extent by Federally funded health centers. In 2002 "…843 federally funded health centers received funds specifically targeted to meet migrant health needs." (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) This does not include those health centers that are not funded and which serve the migrant and seasonal farm workers. Migrant works face particular problems with regard to Medicaid Coverage. Immigrant status and poor and fluctuating income levels are serious obstacles to this source of healthcare coverage. The bottom line is that the overwhelming majority of migrant and hired workers are not eligible for Medicaid. ….under current law, states cannot provide Medicaid coverage to non-disabled low income adults without dependent children. Further, since 1996, recent immigrants, including legal immigrants, have been excluded from Medicaid for the first five years they reside in the United States. (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) To add to the complexity of the situation, research has found that many workers who are eligible for assistance have certain difficulties in enrolling for Medicaid. This is mainly due to language competency issues and cultural- communication problems. For example, the worker may have difficulty in completing certain forms necessary for obtaining health care. Given their limited English skills, "…it can be very difficult for them to complete long application forms or meet extensive verification requirements, particularly if there is limited availability of language assistance." (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) This suggests that key factors in remedying the situation would be more attention to language competency issues. Furthermore, access to healthcare and medical aid is also hampered by the fact that this workers move frequently and this is also related to various residency barriers to medical assistance. (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) 3. Policies, solutions and reform Over the past few year that the have been renewed efforts to deal with the health problems and issues that are so prevalent among hired farm workers in the United States. For instance, there have been efforts by the authorities in many states to improve the availability of Medicaid to these workers. However, many commentators and experts are of the opinion that much more can be done to positively influence the present situation -- especially with regard to access to healthcare and medical insurance. Among the many suggestions that have been put forward is the view that "…. A number of actions could be taken to facilitate farm workers ability to enroll in and utilize Medicaid coverage." (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) These could take the form of "fast track" enrollment option, or by changing the existing criteria for eligibility. Related to this is the suggestion that to establish "…separate eligibility standards for farmworkers and their families that could be consistent across states." (Rosenbaum and Shin, 2005) This would help to deal with the problem of mobility among these workers that was noted above. In terms of broader policy initiatives it has been suggested that a new federal coverage program for farm workers and their families be created in order to enroll farm worker on national basis with Medicaid. This would alleviate the problem of interstate movement by these workers. Hove these solutions still does not take account of those non-eligible and non-documented farm workers and their precarious health situation. 4. Conclusion The above section presents a few of the more viable solutions to the problem of healthcare among farm workers. There is little doubt that the increasing number of hired farm workers has meant that health issues and problems surrounding access to health insurance and aid has been exacerbated. However, while these are serious health problems, the number of workers is relatively low. This has led many commentators to suggest that relatively small changes and innovations in the present system can lead to far-reaching improvements in health care for these workers. For instance, issues such as language and cultural barriers are aspects that create real barriers to proper health care and these aspects can be remedied with organized assistance. The importance of these workers for the agricultural economy requires that a far -- reaching and comprehsive solution to these issues be reached. As Villarejo states; "What is clear is that poverty status, lack of health insurance and cultural and language barriers prevent a very large share of these workers from obtaining the healthcare services they need." (Villarejo, 188) However a point that Villarejo makes is also echoed in many other studies; namely that there is still a great need for more comprehensive and detailed research and analysis into the problem. This refers to the important fact that, "…the health of this population is still not well understood." (Villarejo 188) it is therefore imperative that there be more detailed research into this area of concern. It follows that only once these different aspects and variables have been careful researched and analyzed can the correct assistance be properly and effectively implemented. Works cited Health Problems among Migrant Farmworkers' Children in the U.S. ERIC Digest. September 27, 2008. ILO warns on farm safety Agriculture mortality rates remain high Pesticides pose major health risks to global workforce. September 27, 2008. Overview of America's Farmworkers. September 27, 2008. Protect Farm Worker's Health. September 27, 2008. Rosenbaum, S. And Shin, P. Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers: Health Insurance Coverage and Access to Care. September 27, 2008. Tuberculosis and migrant farm workers. September 27, 2008. http://www.faqs.org/abstracts/Health/Tuberculosis-and-migrant-farm-workers-Global-epidemiology-of-tuberculosis-morbidity-and-mortality-of.html Villajero D. The Health of U.S. Hired Farm Workers. Ann. Rev. Public Heath. Vol. Read the full article

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