3 ms·

To the extent that America is still a representative democracy, Americans are responsible for importing workers who have limited rights and no representation (t

To the extent that America is still a representative democracy, Americans are responsible for importing workers who have limited rights and no representation (they can't vote, they can't contact law enforcement for help, etc). These problems can be solved in other ways. A real world solution probably involves some workers getting paid less than they would like, and some businesses paying higher wages than they want to. The least moral solution is to develop an illegal underclass and deny them human and political rights. This sort of thing is cancerous for a democracy and bears an unsettling resemblance to one of America's original sins, one which I'm sure I don't need to name directly, but which we knew was wrong from day one, and which we spent a lot of blood and treasure to abolish.

distances 7y ago
On this I agree. In Finland the seasonal workers do have strong protections, and recently some witnesses were flown in from Thailand to testify in a court case against one of the exploiting employers. The rules and regulations are thankfully strong and enforced in most of Europe; they definitely can contact the police. I'm not sure how to react to cases where this is true but the seasonal workers still see it as a good source of income. Would the market bear the increased cost? Likely not. Avocados would be imported in the US, and in Finland berries would disappear as an industry ingredient as there are no low-cost countries with climate suitable for cultivation.