Weekly Activism Log #4

This past Sunday we finally got to do our Garden Day in Fellsmere with the migrant farm workers. It was a very interesting day. We got to a bit of a late start, but when we arrived we were happily greeted. After some speaking and eating lunch we got outside to do the actual work. I started off in the bamboo group. We drove over to a road with bamboo trees all along the side. We cut and bundled a bunch of bamboo to bring back to the garden. Then we continued to cut the bamboo and stick it in the ground around the plants. I had no idea why we were doing this until later, but I just tried to do my best. Later we tied strings around the bamboo and created lines of the string throughout the garden. I learned this is to support the tomato plants so that they don’t fall over because of the weight of the fruit. We also did many other things like spreading manure around the fields and so on.

It was cool that we were able to use our activism to help others because we really got a lot done. However, we definitely helped ourselves much more than we helped them. We were able to get to know these workers and experience a tiny bit of what they experience. It definitely created a new respect for the workers, at least to me. I think this is something everyone should do. Gathering together as women to see firsthand the cause that we are fighting for is something irreplaceable. It is important to realize that just because we are willing to help, doesn’t mean we know the best way to help. The workers we worked alongside were brilliant and beautiful people that obviously know way more than I about their struggles. I still don’t know the best way for us to organize as women’s groups or feminists, but I know that we need to not only educate ourselves on what we are fighting for, but also really create knowledge through getting on the same level as those who actually experience it. Basically, we cannot feel as if we are above in some way or fighting for, rather we are fighting with.

This week was definitely the most impactful for me personally. I have gained infinite amounts of things that I cannot even fully express. I have gained knowledge, respect, and love for migrant farm workers.