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MCC to Host Screening of Documentary on Immigration and "Guest Workers" in American Agriculture

The Land Conservancy of McHenry County (TLC), the Illinois Migrant Council, and McHenry County College’s Center for Agrarian Learning are presenting an eye-opening documentary film, “Harvest of Loneliness: The Bracero Program.” The free screening will be held on Tuesday, April 12 at 6:30 p.m. at McHenry County College (MCC) in the Luecht Auditorium located at 8900 Hwy. 14, Crystal Lake, IL.

Shedding light on the current debate over immigration reform and the use of “guest workers” in American agriculture, this historical documentary examines what was known as the Bracero Program—a system put in place from 1942 to 1964 to recruit Mexican farm laborers for temporary work in the United States. The film presents moving testimony from surviving braceros as well as family members and descendants of these displaced workers, who typically went north expecting not just fair wages but also humane treatment and working conditions—expectations that were rarely met.

After the film, special guest Maggie Rivera, President of the Illinois Migrant Council, will share the story of her father, Raul Enriquez, and family members Teodoro Cardoza and Juan Rivera who came to Illinois as braceros and worked on farms in McHenry County.

This program is hosted by The Land Conservancy in partnership with the Illinois Migrant Council and the Center for Agrarian Learning at MCC, with support from Food: Land: Opportunity.

The Land Conservancy of McHenry County is a member-based private nonprofit dedicated to preserving natural, scenic, and agricultural land.

For any questions, contact Linda Balek of The Land Conservancy of McHenry County at lbalek@conservemc.org or (815) 337-9502.