Mike Killingsworth: Don’t look down on those working in our fields

The Native Americans who met the Europeans when they first landed on this continent greeted them without hostility. It probably didn’t take long before they wished they could deport all those illegal aliens. Unfortunately for the natives, their dissatisfaction with the presence of interlopers led to genocide efforts against their peoples. Under the guise of “manifest destiny,” we eventually took the southwest from the Mexicans and Native Americans living there.

While working for migrant education, I met many of those who work in agriculture of all types. The vast majority are hard-working, salt-of-the-earth individuals with strong family values. Many who work here live in poverty, yet still send money back to relatives in Mexico. They contribute significantly to our economy and value education and hard work.

As a 10-year-old boy, I picked cotton in the fields near Bakersfield. When I was a senior in high school I got a job planting onions. I lasted two days because it was back-breaking work. I haven’t forgotten where I come from. I don’t think we are going to find any Anglos who want to do that kind of work; do you?

This story was originally published January 9, 2017 at 1:54 PM with the headline "Mike Killingsworth: Don’t look down on those working in our fields."