Anthro 3302 GDA BC Chap 13 & Short Film (1)

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Anthropology 3302 Discussion Questions Chapter 13: “Oaxacans Like to Work Bent Over”: The Naturalization of Social Suffering among Berry Farm Workers by Seth Holmes 1. Paul Farmer defines structural violence as “violence exerted systematically—that is, indirectly—by everyone who belongs to a certain social order.” a. What is the “certain social order” causing structural violence in this case study? i. The hierarchy of suffering. The Tanaka farm has a hierarchical social organization, with Anglo- and Japanese American citizens at the top in executive positions and the undocumented indigenous Triqui Mexican workers at the bottom as berry pickers. The hierarchies are shaped both by citizenship and ethnicity. Everyone in this system exerts suffering down the hierarchical lines. b. How is suffering naturalized? i. Suffering is naturalized through the idea of symbolic violence, where social asymmetries are accepted, even by those oppressed, because the social world is viewed through a lens that is ascribed by that very social world. The social order is internalized and viewed as natural and the way things go. For instance, because of their natural characteristics, the indigenous Oaxacan bodies are viewed to belong to picking berries instead of other jobs that do not pose risks to their health and wellbeing. Another way the social order can be naturalized is through the oppressed population’s pride in their strength, like the Triqui workers who viewed themselves as resilient and hardy to pesticides and border crossing tribulations, feeding back into the system which places them in the lowest rungs and most laborious positions. c. How do ideas about race shape structural violence? i. Prejudice reinforces perceived social orders based on race. If people are reduced to their race and stereotypical characteristics that are naturalized and portray that groups of people as deserving or belonging to oppressive conditions, then structural

violence is being actively committed and maintained. For instance, the Triqui migrant workers are consistently characterized as simple-minded and traditional people who do not understand modern ways, validating the majority’s oppression of them. Triqui is portrayed as simpler people who should be placed in poor living and working conditions because of their race. 2. Why do many people (including physicians and epidemiologists) feel uncomfortable when an ecological analysis is expanded to the world of politics? Are political dimensions so complicated and thorny that they make solutions seem less imaginable? a. When expanding into the world of politics, there comes a lot of debate and differing opinions. As a physician, one chooses to work in certain areas. In a gray zone, individuals work in such severe conditions, but they will do whatever it takes to survive. The segregation that is inherently present is driven by larger structural forces, not by the people that are locally “in charge”. Physicians and nurses who work in these gray zones must adapt to difficult conditions with no advanced medical technology, insurance, and poor systems of organizing care and medical records. They also consciously know that the pay will be worse. Physicians are taught to see health through two lenses, biological and behavioral. Without the training to recognize social determinants of health, health professionals do not see proximal determinants of health and sufferings, leaving these causes unacknowledged and untreated. Recognizing these social determinants means recognizing the political aspects of the inequalities being enforced. This is a difficult and complicated task that physicians and others are taught to just turn a blind eye to and put a band aid over the issue. Political dimensions are so complicated and have been put into place for so long that they are naturalized. To acknowledge these means going against social order and creating disorder. Because of the natural human response to feel comfort, physicians, epidemiologists, and others will continue to avoid political disagreements, creating the vision that solutions are so out of reach. 3. What factors contribute to the fact that most of us don’t know, or think about, the human story behind our food?

a. One factor that contributes to our lack of understanding about the human story behind food production is our culture. Our society is separated from the means of production. We have a division between labor and consumption where the consumers and everyday citizens don’t see where or how their food is made. This distances us from the land and labor that produces our food and allows us to turn a blind eye to the human story behind it. We also have a highly consumerist culture where we just grab and go when it comes to food consumption, and we do not have rituals or conscious acknowledgement to honor or remember the labor behind it. Another factor that reduces our knowledge about the human contributions to food production is evolution. Our transition to domestication of plants and animals has led to the division of labor seen today. We are no longer hunter-gatherers who rely on ourselves to provide food. Instead, we simply grocery shop for our food which weakens our understanding of where food comes from and the work it takes to farm and harvest it. 4. How does this article inform our understanding of the impact of COVID-19 on people in the US? a. This article provides important insights into the healthcare available to migrant workers in the US. The migrant clinics are underfunded, lack access to advanced technology, and struggle to provide continuity of care. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, these pitfalls are now especially deadly. COVID-19 is very dangerous for migrant workers who are living in close quarters without heating or insulation. These types of living conditions can increase the spread of COVID-19 and cause more people to become ill. For those with underlying medical conditions, COVID-19 can require hospitalization and immense respiratory support. Many migrant workers are undocumented and lack health insurance. This makes them less likely to seek care at a hospital for fear of being deported or going into debt. As a result, they are at risk of dying from COVID-19. Overall, this article informs us of the need for better medical care for migrant workers in the US. Without migrant workers, the agriculture business in the US would collapse. They are essential workers because they put food in grocery stores so Americans can feed their families.

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