每日英語跟讀 Ep.856: Farmworkers Once Unwelcome Are Now Deemed ‘Essential’ 疫情下缺工 非法農工變「不可或缺」

Like legions of immigrant farmworkers, Nancy Silva for years has done the grueling work of picking fresh fruit that Americans savor, all while afraid that one day she could lose her livelihood because she is in the country illegally.

就像大批農場移工一樣，南西·席爾瓦多年來從事於採摘美國人享用的鮮果的辛苦工作，她一直擔心有天會因非法居留而失去生計。

But the widening coronavirus pandemic has brought an unusual kind of recognition: Her job as a field worker has been deemed by the federal government as “essential” to the country.

但是，不斷擴大的新冠病毒大流行卻帶來一種不尋常的認可：她作為農場工人的工作，被聯邦政府視為國家所「不可或缺」。

Silva, who has spent much of her life in the United States evading law enforcement, now carries a letter from her employer in her wallet, declaring that the Department of Homeland Security considers her “critical to the food supply chain.”

席爾瓦一生中許多時間都在美國躲避執法部門，如今皮夾內有封雇主的信，聲明國土安全部認為她「對食品供應鏈至關重要」。

“It's like suddenly they realized we are here contributing,” said Silva, a 43-year-old immigrant from Mexico who has been working in the clementine groves south of Bakersfield, California.

席爾瓦說：「就好像他們突然意識到我們來到這兒是在貢獻。」43歲的她是來自墨西哥的移民，一直在加州貝克斯菲爾德以南的克萊門汀果園內工作。

It is an open secret that the vast majority of people who harvest America's food are immigrants in the country illegally, mainly from Mexico, many of them decadeslong residents of the United States. Often the parents of American-born children, they have lived for years with the cloud of deportation hanging over their households.

絕大多數採收美國食用農產品的工人都是非法移民，這是個公開的祕密，他們主要來自墨西哥，其中許多人在美國住了幾十年。他們通常在美國生下了子女，多年來一家人一直在遭驅逐出境的烏雲籠罩下生活。

The “essential work” letters that many now carry are not a free pass from immigration authorities, who could still deport Silva and other field workers at any time.

許多人目前所攜帶的「不可或缺工作」信件，並非移民當局所發的自由通行證，移民局仍然隨時可將席爾瓦跟其他無證農工驅逐出境。

But local law enforcement authorities said the letters might give immigrant workers a sense of security that they will not be arrested for violating stay-at-home orders.

但當地執法部門說，這些信可能會讓移工有種安全感，知道不會因違反居家避疫令而遭逮捕。

“If you have people who perceive that they may be stopped and questioned or deported because of their status, under these circumstances, having that letter makes them feel comfortable,” said Eric Buschow, a captain with the sheriff's office in Ventura County, where thousands of farmworkers labor in strawberry, lemon and avocado operations. “They can go to work. And their work is essential now.”

加州文杜拉郡警長辦公室隊長艾瑞克．布蕭說：「如果有些人覺得可能因自己身份而遭攔查、盤問或驅逐出境，有了那封信會讓他們感到放心。他們可以去工作。現在他們的工作是不可或缺的。」當地有成千上萬工人在草莓、檸檬和酪梨農場工作。

The pandemic has also put many of Immigration and Customs Enforcement's operations on hold. On March 18, the agency said it would “temporarily adjust its enforcement posture” to focus not on ordinary immigrants in the country illegally, but on those who pose a public safety or criminal threat.

這場全球大流行疫情還導致移民及海關執法局的許多行動暫停。該機構在3月18日表示，將「暫時調整執法方向」，重點不擺在普通無證移民，而是構成公共安全或刑事威脅的人。

“Those of us without papers live in fear that immigration will pick us up,” Silva said. “Now we are feeling more relaxed.”

席爾瓦說：「我們這些沒有證件的人生活在恐懼中，擔心移民局會把我們帶走。現在我們放心些了。」

Source article: https://paper.udn.com/udnpaper/POH0067/352704/web/