Tuesday, May 1, 2018
GOW Migrant Workers
In this time period, migrant workers were moving to California in search for a better life. They left behind or sold some of their unnecessary belongings to other people for cheap, because they did not have room to take it with them on their journey. Going to California was a gamble for these migrant workers because they were not guaranteed work. They had just seen pamphlets saying that only a couple hundred or thousand workers were needed, but basically everybody packed up and headed west. It was somewhat of a race to see who could get there and get a job first, since jobs were extremely limited. Most migrant workers had very little money to spend on their way to California and it was difficult for them to find places to rest, clean up, etc. The migrant workers were also overtaking the regular workers' jobs, because they were willing to work for so much less money since they were desperate for work. This outraged the workers who were already working, and as a result they lost their jobs and were replaced with the migrant workers. These are just some examples that show that migrant workers were willing to risk it all in order to have a better quality of life for themselves and their families.
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I agree with each point you make on what migrants had to go through and their struggles they encounter. They did have to give up so much and had no guarantee for a job in California but still risked everything. I might add dome examples from the Joad family of and the struggles they encounter as well.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that the migrant workers sacrificed a lot to move their families to California. I like how you included that it made the residents mad, they did take their jobs because they were willing to work for close to nothing. The migrant workers were desperate, and it scared the residents because they knew that the migrant workers didn't have much to lose.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that the migrant workers enraged the locals because they are taking the jobs. The migrant workers needed food and would do anything to get it, even if it meant working for a penny an hour. Migrant workers were desperate people and desperate people are scary.
ReplyDeleteI agree with all of these points. There are many times throughout the book where the Joad family faces a hard time because they are discriminated against or for getting their hopes up about California. The inner chapters do a really good job of explaining these points through the eyes of migrant workers and show how it was not just the Joad family facing these tough times, but thousands of people who had lost their homes and needed work to keep their families fed. Migrant workers were also tricked into taking lower pay, which I found really interesting and would be another good point to add. Overall, you make some really good and strong points about migrant workers.
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