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Virginia farm workers among delegation travelling to D.C. to push agriculture bill

Crystal Graham
farmer in field
(© scharfsinn86 – stock.adobe.com)

More than 60 farm workers are travelling to Washington, D.C. this week to push Congress to pass the bipartisan Farm Workforce Modernization Act, according to a news release from The United Farm Workers, the UFW Foundation, Pineros Campesinos Union del Norte and La Union del Pueblo Entero.

The Farm Workforce Modernization Act is compromise legislation which will honor farm workers’ labor and help secure America’s food supply.

Farm workers from major agricultural states will be a part of the delegation including workers from Virginia.

The Farm Workforce Modernization Act passed the U.S. House of Representatives in March of 2021 with 247 votes and with 30 GOP votes.

“Providing America’s agricultural workforce with the legal status and stability they have earned is a crucial factor in ensuring America’s food security,” said UFW President Teresa Romero. “On Thanksgiving, when Americans gather with family to give thanks for the food on their table, we ask Congress to show its thanks to essential farm workers and their families by passing this common-sense bipartisan legislation.”

UFW Foundation Chief Executive Officer Diana Tellefson Torres said that families all over the country will enjoy food this Thanksgiving brought to them by farm workers.

“Farm workers demonstrated during the pandemic that they are at the very core of our food security,” said Tellefson Torres. “These hardworking men and women have earned the opportunity to apply for legal status.  Let’s give thanks to those who nourish this nation by passing the Farm Workforce Modernization Act through Congress.”

Crystal Graham

Crystal Graham

Crystal Abbe Graham is the regional editor of Augusta Free Press. A 1999 graduate of Virginia Tech, she has worked for 25 years as a reporter and editor for several Virginia publications, written a book, and garnered more than a dozen Virginia Press Association awards for writing and graphic design. She was the co-host of "Viewpoints," a weekly TV news show, and co-host of Virginia Tonight, a nightly TV news show on PBS. Her work on "Virginia Tonight" earned her a national Telly award for excellence in television.