Migrant farm workers are the backbone of Canada’s agricultural economy. But because they can be fired and deported at will, their voices are rarely ever heard in this country.

But Gabriel Allahdua is one of the few who can now speak up. And the story he has to tell is startling.

It’s a story of racism and labour exploitation that goes back decades, even centuries. And it’s a prophecy of what is to come — that the hardships inflicted on migrant farm workers are only a trial run for the rest of us. 

This is the second episode in a two-part series on farm labour. 

Featured in this episode: Gabriel Allahdua, Chris Ramsaroop

To learn more:

Harvesting Freedom: The Life of a Migrant Worker in Canada by Gabriel Allahdua with Edward Dunsworth

“‘Overtly racist’: Lawsuit challenges Canada’s migrant farmworker system” by Jillian Kestler-D'Amours in Al-Jazeera

“Former Ontario seasonal farmworker speaks out about exploitation, files class action lawsuit” by Jon Woodward in CTV News

“The Canadian state and the racialization of Caribbean migrant farm labour 1947–1966” by Vic Satzewich in Ethnic and Racial Studies

Credits: Arshy Mann (Host and Producer), Jordan Cornish (Producer), Noor Azrieh (Producer), André Proulx (Production Coordinator), Karyn Pugliese (Editor-in-Chief)

Additional music from Audio Network

Sponsors: Rotman, AG1

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