It was supposed to be a
learning experience. And it was.
The summer of 1988, I
joined a detasseling crew. Fieldwork in a cornfield. For $4 an hour. 65¢ more
than minimum! And I was going to earn it! I had been warned up front that it
was hard work. But my parents thought it would be a good experience. Besides, there’s
nothing wrong with a little hard work.
I was 15 and I was going
to have a hard time even finding a job, let alone anything that paid over
minimum. They had already hired everyone over 16 who wanted to work and
were now considering those who were at least 14 and could qualify for a work
permit. My friend’s parents were on board too and so she and I were all set.
That summer was overly
dry. As a result all of the corn was only about hip high. So it had to be
walked on foot and done by hand. We had to bend down and pull the tassels of
each and every plant in rows the length of the different fields they bussed us to, before they had the chance
to cross-pollinate. Up and back. Up and back. As fast as our arms would move.
That first day, at 5 AM,
we climbed on the bus. Ready to work. There were 40 on our crew.
Upon entering the bus,
we were told if the work was too hard to handle and we needed to quit, we could go sit on
the bus and wait for the ride back to town. They didn’t tell that to the other
35 in the crew, just the 5 girls.
“They’ll never make it.”
A hiss slithered up from the back in our direction.
And in that moment it
became crystal clear that there would be no quitting. It wasn’t the same option for
us it was for the rest. After all, there’s nothing wrong with a little
hard work.
It was grueling, hot,
back-aching work. But we hit it hard. And did it all. Everything we were asked.
We never missed a day.
And we encountered
snakes and rats. Not only in the corn, but on the crew too.
We were taunted by our
coworkers.
Told we were weak and
slow, although we did the same amount of work in the same time…so wouldn’t that
make them weak and slow too?
Grabbed and groped “as jokes”
because that’s just what all guys do. No
it’s not.
Had our food stolen. Our
drinks poured out.
Laughed at. Spit on.
Told a bunch of vulgar crap.
“What? Are you gonna
cry? Just quit already!” NO! You quit! I
have as much right to this job as you do!
And they did.
Every day, the crew got
smaller. And smaller. Until by the end, there were 8 of us who stuck it out.
The whole season. 2 guys and 6 girls. We gained a girl the 2nd week.
We did it. We stuck
together and stuck it out. And we got our full pay. And…a bonus. That the 8 of
us never saw coming. For all of the crap we put up with and pushed through that
the owner found out about after firing a foreman and a couple crew members.
But when it came down to
it…we were privileged. Not rich. Privileged.
Privileged because
unlike others out there, our livelihoods didn’t depend on that job. Our sticking it out
was a choice we had. And we made. Because we weren’t going to let them win.
But sometimes they do
win. Anyway. And it sucks.
Privileged because I had the choice to not come back the next summer. To not take the
foreman job I was offered. To take some time and look for something else to do with everything I had learned.
Because there’s nothing wrong
with a little hard work. But there is something wrong. Very wrong with treating people as
less than. Harassing them. Threatening them. Exploiting them. Or just looking the other way.
And if you don't agree, then maybe it's time you tried some "working class" work. It might be a
learning experience.
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