To wrap up National Minority Health Month, NCLR is proudly hosting a blog carnival with our friends and partners to celebrate recent progress toward eliminating health disparities for underserved communities—and talk frankly about the challenges that remain. Today, bloggers answer the question: What is your organization or community doing to advance a health equity mission?
Farmworker Justice: Advancing Health Equity through Education and Advocacy
By Alexis Guild, Migrant Health Policy Analyst, Farmworker Justice
Farmworker Justice (FJ), a national farmworker advocacy organization based in Washington, DC, strongly believes in the empowerment of our nation’s farmworkers. Farmworkers work and live under extremely hazardous conditions. They are disproportionately affected by pesticide exposure, poor housing conditions, strenuous and dangerous working conditions, and physical and mental stress. Yet according to the 2009 National Agricultural Worker’s Survey, 41% of farmworkers had not visited a U.S. healthcare provider in two years. Farmworkers face unique barriers to healthcare access. They are poor; they often live in rural areas with little public transportation; many are immigrants and don’t speak English well; they have different cultural beliefs; they risk retaliation and exploitation by employers; and often are fearful due to discrimination and xenophobia.
Farmworker Justice’s health programs aim to positively impact the well-being of farmworkers through education and capacity-building. We work with farmworker organizations, farmworker advocates, civil rights organizations, legal services providers and migrant health centers to promote access to healthcare. Through our partners, we are able to connect farmworkers to health information. We train promotores de salud (community health workers) on HIV/AIDS prevention, workplace safety and children’s health. We also provide training to migrant healthcare providers and farmworker advocates on policies and issues that affect farmworker communities, such as immigration law, so they may enhance their outreach and provide more culturally competent care.
At FJ, we hope to advance health equity through education, law and policy. Our nation’s farmworkers, who harvest the fruits and vegetables we eat, have earned their right to quality healthcare that is affordable, accessible and culturally competent. FJ and our partners are committed to working towards improved health access for all farmworkers.
For more information on Farmworker Justice’s health programs, please visit www.farmworkerjustice.org
This post originally appeared at Harvesting Justice. Views and opinions expressed are those of the author and Farmworker Justice.