Living Under The Trees

Photographs and Oral Histories, by David Bacon Community Dialogues Organized by the Indigenous Front of Bi-National Organizations and California Rural Legal Assistance

Triqui migrants from Oaxaca, Mexico, work in the fields at prestigious wineries in Alexander Valley, California, returning at night to settlements of plastic-covered bamboo tents.

In San Diego's affluent Del Mar suburbs, migrants harvest tomatoes, strawberries, oranges and avocados. Until recently, they lived on a hillside within sight of a new housing development.

Purepecha farm workers from Michoacan pick lemons in Oxnard, while theirfamilies often live in a single room.

This photography and oral history documents indigenous farm-worker communities in rural California, and those scattered on the edges of cities from San Diego to Santa Rosa. The project highlights their difficult working conditions and acute housing crisis, as well as the efforts to preserve and develop indigenous culture as a means of survival and self-expression.

Sponsors:
The Ruth Haas Library; Student Affairs; Western International Center; Departments of Social Sciences, World Languages & Literature, and History

For more information contact: bandhauerc@wcsu.edu or call (203) 837-8650.

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