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Anand Bhat

Professor Adam Scott

Eng 101

22nd September

Response to the chapter in the strawberry fields from the book

Reefer Madness by Eric Schlosser

We were born on this planet free with no consciousness of labels or nationalities. We now live in

a world were artificially created labels and identities mean more than who we are. A world

where a laminated green card with an eagle on it can mean life or death for many. A world were

a barricaded fence separate the haves and the have nots. This is the life of the immigrant; a

constant fear of draconian laws and exploitation. A constant object of fear, hate and ridicule.

Here toils the migrant laborer, toiling in his ancestral land.

Every year thousands of people immigrate to the land of the free with a mad hope in their hearts

and belief in the system. A system that has historically turned a blind eye while these migrants

fought for scraps from the table of that very system that kept them subservient instead of self

determined. A vast majority of these people speak no English and are willing to work for

absurdly low amounts of money. These are fathers and mothers with a responsibility to many on

the other side of the Rio Grande and will thus go to extraordinary lengths and endure profound

injustices to do what must be done. They are the modern day breed of slaves, only this time they

submit to servitude willingly without protest because they have no other choice.
According to Eric Schlosser the average migrant is a twenty nine year old male from Mexico,

who earns less than seven thousand and five hundred dollars, a year for twenty five weeks of

farmwork.According to one estimate, and his life expectancy is forty-nine years.Forty-nine

years. That is how old an average American will be when his children are just about to get into

college. An age when most Americans start planning for a long and comfortable retirement.

Why are third world countries so poor and why do their citizens immigrate both legally and

‘illegally’ in such large numbers? Third world countries are rich places that have massive

amounts of natural resources. They have a glorious history of innovation and have contributed

immensely to the human race. Yet centuries of imperialist control and continued embargos push

them deeper and deeper in poverty.

Much as I love America and her people the American government has for long built a vast

number of puppet democracies in countries like Peru, Republica Dominicana, Nicaragua, and

Ecuador amongst a host of other Latin American and South American countries. Apart from all

of this American multinationals like Walmart have setup sweatshops in China and India.

In conclusion, Strawberry fields exposes but a mere sliver of the immigration issue. As thorough

as Eric Schlosser is with his investigation and reporting; he has but hit the tip of the iceberg. The

chapter is poignant and angers those who know what it feels like to be considered an unnecessary

and sometimes undesirable part of an American society that has been raised to believe that

outside of America live sub humans who deserve their unfortunate circumstances. We are led to

believe that exploiting these people makes us prosperous and that our imperial ways are a

necessary evil.
There are no immigrants or natives. When stripped down to the very basics we are all humans

who just want a better life for those we care about.

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