On Thursday October 8, The Nuns on the Bus Virtual Tour had a site visit with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers and Alliance for Fair Food. The Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) is located in Immokalee Florida and is a worker-based human rights organization that fights against human trafficking and gender-based violence. The Alliance for Fair Food (AFF) is a coalition of CIW, Interfaith Action, Student Farmworker Alliance, and Just Harvest that joined together to build collective strength and stand with farmworkers as they advance their struggle for justice and dignity. During the Visit, Sister Simone Campbell spoke with Nely, Julia, Silvia, and Cruz from the Coalition of Immokalee Workers as well as Uriel from the Alliance for Fair Food.

Organizing efforts for both the CIW and AFF begin with this question of “who has power?” Their work has taught them that by gathering together and targeting the massive food corporation who use their power to leverage farmworkers, they are able to make workplace changes such as increased wages and greater protections against violence. During the conversation Silvia emphasized how “gender-based and sexual violence continue to be a big problem in this industry. Through the Alliance for Fair Food we have been able to see a significant change in terms of protections and creating a culture where women are able to speak up without fear of retaliation.”

"I do this work to continue to expand these protections because this campaign is actually bringing change to this community. We know farmworkers have been deemed as essential yet they do not have a lot of protections in order to ensure they are safe." – Julia .@ciw #NunsOnTheBus pic.twitter.com/OYKwFHooMb

— NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice (@NETWORKLobby) October 8, 2020

In Immokalee, Florida there have been over 2,250 confirmed cases of COVID-19. Due to a variety of factors in housing, access to medical care, and transportation farmworkers are uniquely vulnerable to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, as Cruz said during the site visit, “all our small actions add up to something momentous. Those small actions have meant a difference to farmworkers having their rights respected” One of those small actions the CIW is asking us to take is to sign the petition calling for the government to take the necessary steps to protect essential farmworkers.

Watch the Nuns on the Bus site visit to the Coalition of Immokalee Workers/Alliance for Fair Food to learn more. Watch on Facebook or YouTube.

“I think I can! I think I can!” said the little train chugging up the mountain; so says this big bus virtually zooming across the United States.

With Sr. Simone Campbell at the wheel, the Network bus made it to the Carney Latin American Solidarity Archive, or CLASA, at the University of Detroit Mercy on Oct. 1. We were co-hosted by the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

Gail Presbey from CLASA described the archived stories of immigrants struggling for ways to make a livelihood in their new land. The stories we continue to hear of racial and gender discrimination, poverty, disenfranchisement, nonacceptance into community, impairment of the right to vote, struggles to welcome the stranger — all are archived even as they continue today. Immaculate Heart of Mary Sr. Elizabeth Walters and Barb Beasley described their work with yearlong education and action networks to prepare for the upcoming election.

We spent a few moments breathing in deeply and breathing out slowly in prayer, led by Barb Beasley.

We share the air on Earth. We breathed this shared air into our lungs during prayer. All together, we breathed this air out of our lungs. We live in and walk through air we share, every living being on Earth; we are united as one in the very breath we share. We are all in this together.

Voting is a communal action and a moral imperative. As the discussion began, I was reminded of a statement from a previous town hall: “Bad politicians are elected by good citizens who don’t vote.”

Some of the concerns raised by these spirit-filled voters in Detroit included the right to life, climate change, economics, health care, immigration, racism and getting out the vote. Sister Simone spoke of her new book, Hunger for Hope, which is available through Network. We must bring moral vision to all issues of public life.

[Sr. Jan Kilian is a Franciscan Sister of Little Falls, Minnesota. She has an academic background in hospital medical records, human development, and spiritual direction.]

This blog was originally published on Global Sisters Report.

On Wednesday September 30, the Nuns on the Bus virtually visited the Center for Worker Justice of Eastern Iowa. The Center for Worker Justice (CWJ) was founded to unite low-wage workers in Eastern Iowa across race and immigration statute to achieve social and economic justice through education, direct services and community alliance. The CWJ prioritizes defending worker’s rights, improving housing options for low-income residents, and providing assistance to those affected by immigration policies.

During the virtual conversation, Sister Simone Campbell was joined by the Interim Executive Director Mazahir Salih, the CWJ President Marcela Hurtado, the CWJ Vice President Kamel Elgiseer, the CWJ Leader Bijou Maliabo, the CWJ Leader and Board Member Margarita Baltazar and community organizer Mayra Hernandez.

Since its founding in 2012, the CWJ has had several campaign victories such as establishing the first Midwestern Community ID program for Johnson County. Community IDs are important as they allow for people to access library cards, open bank accounts, acquire medication, and create a sense of belonging.

The CWJ also works to raise the minimum wage. Mazahir Salih shared her story saying, “When I came to this country back in 1997, I worked as a cashier at McDonald’s and they paid me minimum wage which was $5.25. In 23 years, the federal minimum wage has only risen $2.” In order to combat this injustice, the CWJ organized that the county level to raise the minimum wage to $10.10. However, the state of Iowa argued that individual counties could not raise their own minimum wage, so the CWJ created and tracks local businesses that have committed to a $10.10 wage.

Beyond organizing, the CWJ also focuses on education. As CWJ President Marcela Hurtado said “we want to educate the community to know their rights!” as well as “educate our white neighbors, who may think we [immigrants] are all the same.” The immigrant experience is broad and those who are most vulnerable are those who do not have access to government resources and language accessible resources. However, as the virtual conversation demonstrated, the Center for Worker Justice of Eastern Iowa is about meeting the needs of the people and if there is a need they will respond.

Watch the Nuns on the Bus site visit to The Center for Workers Justice of Eastern Iowa to learn more. Watch on Facebook or YouTube.

On Friday, September 25, the Nuns on the Bus Virtual Tour made a site visit to St. Joseph’s Neighborhood Center in Rochester, NY. St. Joseph’s Neighborhood Center provides comprehensive physical and mental health services to people who are uninsured and under-insured  in and around Rochester. During the visit, Sister Simone Campbell, SSS,  spoke with Robyn Carter, Director of Health Access, Phyllis Jackson, Community Wellness Project Manager, Joel Elliot, Director of Development and Communications, and Sister Christine Wagner, SSJ, Executive Director about the organization’s wholistic approach to providing health care, along with their racial equity work.

According to Sr. Christine, St. Joseph’s Neighborhood Center is “at the epicenter of the healthcare crisis, economic crisis, and racial equity crisis.” The services that St. Joseph’s Neighborhood Center provides are directly affected by the social determinants of health, such as race, income, gender, age, and more. Surveys determining health and wellness needs for community members are compiled by patients of St. Joseph’s Neighborhood Center in order to provide substantial, holistic care. Sr. Christine describes St. Joseph’s Neighborhood Center as “fiercely independent,” because the organization is 100% funded by the community. The organization does not take insurance because of the barriers it causes, and does not receive state or federal funding. St. Joseph’s Neighborhood Center provides comprehensive care and services that are as accessible as possible to community members so people are not stuck waiting for important care. “We hear so much about why healthcare for all can’t work,” said Phyllis Jackson. “But it’s working!”

Watch the Nuns on the Bus site visit to St. Joseph’s Neighborhood Center to learn more. Watch on Facebook or YouTube.