Author: CIW

Latest slavery indictments expose exploitive nature of H-2A “guestworker” program…

Latest slavery indictments expose exploitive nature of H-2A “guestworker” program…

[caption id="attachment_4167" align="aligncenter" width="565"] A Naples Daily News editorial cartoon from the 1990s captured the shock and disbelief of the Southwest Florida community at the exposure of modern-day slavery rings operating out of Immokalee at the time.  Today, more than two decades later,  forced labor has been effectively eliminated on Fair Food Program farms, but the CIW continues to uncover >> Read More
“Here’s what justice looks like to me”: Read Nicolas Morales Jr.’s open letter on losing his father, re-posted.

“Here’s what justice looks like to me”: Read Nicolas Morales Jr.’s open letter on losing his father, re-posted.

 WATCH: Naples Daily News video (above), "Coalition of Immokalee Workers asks for justice in the death of Nicolas Morales"... Nicolas Morales Jr.: "I will need to be strong, and with the help of loving people, I will manage to become stronger, and to become a good man, just like my dad was." Last week's vigil and petition delivery outside >> Read More
Immokalee youth: “Our community is not safe until those officers are gone from our streets…”

Immokalee youth: “Our community is not safe until those officers are gone from our streets…”

[caption id="attachment_34670" align="aligncenter" width="800"] On Friday, Sept 17, Jesse Andrade, right, Nicolas Morales's stepson, speaks to a representative of the Collier County Sheriff's Office, Lt. Rene Gonzales, left, about the pain caused to his family and to his community by Nicolas's brutal shooting and mauling death exactly one year ago in Immokalee's Farmworker Village neighborhood at the hands of Collier >> Read More
The time for waiting is over.  The time for action is now.

The time for waiting is over. The time for action is now.

[caption id="attachment_34433" align="alignleft" width="6000"] Nicolas Morales's brother speaks to over 100 friends, family members, and supporters from Immokalee, Naples, and Ft. Myers at a vigil held in Immokalee earlier this year.[/caption] Nearly a year has passed without justice for Nicolas Morales, gunned down by Collier County Sheriff's deputy who remains on the job, and in our streets, today... Leaving bad >> Read More
Relief from the Heat!…

Relief from the Heat!…

[caption id="attachment_34477" align="alignleft" width="2000"] A Fair Food Program Education Team member meets with workers in Tennessee at Smoky Mountain Farms earlier this summer.[/caption] Fair Food Program sets new, enforceable standards to protect farmworkers from heat stress in a warming world... New FFP standards require mandatory breaks, comprehensive training, and emergency response protocols on participating farms as summer season temperatures once >> Read More
A tale of two police killings…

A tale of two police killings…

[caption id="attachment_33673" align="aligncenter" width="800"] A still from the dash cam video of Nicolas Morales’ killing by Corporal Pierre Jean last September in Immokalee’s Farmworker Village. The image is of the moment Cpl. Jean shot four bullets at Nicolas from close range.[/caption] Two very similar killings at the hands of the police result in two very different findings on responsibility of >> Read More
WE CALL FOR: Justice for Nicolas; Transparency, accountability, and community partnership in Immokalee…

WE CALL FOR: Justice for Nicolas; Transparency, accountability, and community partnership in Immokalee…

Golpear a uno es golpear a todos; An injury to one is an injury to all... Imagine, just for a moment, a different world from this one — a world defined not by fear, distrust, and tribalism, but by respect, accountability, and a culture of shared humanity.  In this imagined world, all is not perfect, because humans are imperfect, but how >> Read More
As he lay dying…

As he lay dying…

[caption id="attachment_32877" align="aligncenter" width="900"] A young Immokalee resident attends a vigil in Farmworker Village on September 18, 2020, following the shooting of Nicolas Morales Besanilla by Corporal Pierre Jean.[/caption] Terrifying brutality of Nicolas Morales's death at the hands of the police -- deemed "legally justifiable" by the State Attorney -- cannot be allowed to stand... Justice for Nicolas, deep and >> Read More
Publix: Radicals in the heartland?…

Publix: Radicals in the heartland?…

[caption id="attachment_33610" align="aligncenter" width="468"] Farmworkers and their allies fast outside Publix headquarters in Lakeland, Florida, during a week-long, non-violent protest in March of 2012, calling on Publix to join the leading human rights program in the field of social responsibility, the Fair Food Program.[/caption] Recent revelations in Wall Street Journal cast new light on dangerous, anti-democratic ideology behind friendly facade >> Read More