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farmworkers

  • Lucas Benitez is a founder of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers. He is now in the company of the Archbishop Desmond Tutu, John Lewis and the 14th Dali Lama of Tibet
  • Biographer Laura Tillman recounts Lalo Garcia's memories of working in the Florida fields.
  • The Fair Food Program, the signature creation of Coalition of Immokalee Workers, is expanding internationally.
  • An Immokalee-based organization has earned a $100,000 prize that it will use to expand its network.
  • The risk of harm from pesticide exposure in the U.S. is up to five times greater for people of color and that a weak regulatory environment and lax enforcement of existing protections play a significant role in the disproportionate risk faced by Black, Indigenous and people of color, as well as people in low-income communities. We’ll explore the comprehensive study’s findings and recommendations.
  • If no action is taken to reduce emissions by the end of this century, intense heat will cost Florida’s economy roughly $8 billion in lost work every year. And tens of millions of outdoor workers in the U.S. risk losing a collective $55.4 billion dollars in earnings each year by midcentury.
  • At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, attention was paid to the farmworkers who are essential to keeping food on U.S. tables. Here in Florida, they also face extreme, even life-threatening heat, especially as temperatures rise with climate change.
  • State health officials reported 6,772 new COVID-19 cases and 44 deaths, Wednesday. So far more than 7.5 million people in Florida have been vaccinated including more than 2.9 million people who have received a first dose and more than 4.6 million who have completed the series.Florida Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran sent a letter to school district officials, Wednesday, advising that mask wearing for students will be optional this fall.School districts in Southwest Florida are planning to scale back their virtual learning options for the 2021-2022 school year. Area school districts are also reporting a surge in new infections after students returned from spring break.Due to reports of rare blood clots, Florida has paused distribution of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine. Gov. Ron DeSantis says despite the pause, Florida’s vaccine supply is still strong. The state’s effort to vaccinate people in prison is also not affected by the pause.Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried is calling on Gov. DeSantis to loosen vaccine residency restrictions in an effort to get more undocumented farmworkers vaccinated.
  • State health officials reported 5,294 new COVID-19 cases and 87 deaths on Wednesday. So far, more than 5.8 million people in Florida have received a vaccine including more than 2.5 million people who have received a first dose and more than 3.3 million who have either completed the two-shot series or received the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine.Vaccine eligibility in Florida will expand next Monday, April 5, to include anyone 18 and older. Sixteen and 17-year-olds will be eligible, Monday, for the Pfizer vaccine with parental consent.Gov. Ron DeSantis says he’ll take emergency action to prevent government or businesses from requiring the vaccine or a vaccine passport system. Meanwhile, the Biden administration says it will not issue a federal mandate requiring proof of inoculation. The White House will be letting private companies handle the logistics for vaccine passports.Farmworkers in Homestead spoke with Miami-Dade officials this week as they push for vaccine access. Time is short before changes in the growing season prompt migrant farmworkers in Florida travel elsewhere.Attorneys general from 13 states, including Florida, have filed a lawsuit against the Biden Administration over a provision in the federal stimulus that bars state governments from using the relief funds to offset tax cuts.Gov. DeSantis announced Wednesday that principals and teachers at Florida's K-12 public schools will receive $1,000 bonuses similar to the $1,000 bonuses he announced two weeks ago for first responders.