Essential Voices with Wilmer Valderrama

¡Si, Se Puede!

During the pandemic, farm workers had no choice but to keep working long days in the hot sun to harvest the fruits and vegetables that fed our nation. The majority of farm workers in the U.S. are migrant workers, many of whom are undocumented, and who were unable to stay home. Blanca Arroyo, a farm worker in Monterey County California, kept working in the fields even when there was immense fear of bringing COVID home to her family. On today’s show, Blanca shares why this country needs to value the work she and her colleagues do every day, and reminds us all that she is essential in this country. Roundtable guests: Civil rights activist Dolores Huerta and Mónica Ramírez, founder of Justice for Migrant Women. Learn more about Justice for Migrant Women: <a href="https://justice4women.org/">https://justice4women.org/</a> Learn more about the Dolores Huerta Foundation: <a href="https://doloreshuerta.org/">https://doloreshuerta.org/</a> Episode Transcript: <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UzYoWd5dgkoNvLweDIMVaIwAwtZRcFG8XfFCnVPKeM8/edit?usp=sharing%20">https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UzYoWd5dgkoNvLweDIMVaIwAwtZRcFG8XfFCnVPKeM8/edit?usp=sharing </a> Learn more about your ad-choices at <a href="https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com">https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com</a>See <a href="https://omnystudio.com/listener">omnystudio.com/listener</a> for privacy information.

The Covid-19 pandemic introduced the term “Essential Workers” for a class of people who existed before and will persist long after the virus is gone. Vital to society, but rarely heard from, this “essential” class is often hit hardest by the imbalances and injustices of our culture. In each episode, host Wilmer Valderrama will have intimate conversations with people on the frontlines of the food system, transportation, child-care and other workers who are so often overlooked. That conversation leads to a round-table discussion with activists and politically-active celebrities, discussing themes, issues and areas of needed change. The show seeks to reveal the invisible connections between all of us.