Dehumanization of Braceros
Crossing the border was a major hurdle. Participants of the Bracero Program “were often subjected to humiliating exams and bureaucratic procedures” (Smithsonian). They were told to strip and were sprayed with the pesticide DDT as they passed through the stations they were herded through. The image to the right shows a naked bracero being sprayed with DDT. The sprayer thoroughly sprayed the men while he wore a mask. Isaías Sánchez, an ex-bracero, stated “they sprayed us like rats, like insects. We left covered in powder” (Smithsonian). DDT, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, is a colorless, tasteless, and almost odorless liquid pesticide that was used to spray on crops and kill bugs (“DDT”). According to its EU classification it is a chemical that is both toxic and dangerous to the environment (“DDT”). Long term exposure can lead to several health concerns: liver damages, temporary nervous system damage, reduced reproductive success, can cause liver cancer, damages to their reproductive system, etc. (“DDT”). “Even though DDT has been banned since 1972, it can take more than 15 years to break down in our environment” (“DDT”), this shows the how bad it is understood today. If they failed to pass the medical exams, they were just sent back to Mexico. Growers would come to the “border looking for able-bodied and experienced farm workers. Braceros sought contracts offering good pay and decent working conditions in areas hospitable to Mexican laborer” (Smithsonian). Additionally, there were disinfection plants were they “would be subjected to an intrusive medical inspection, disinfected, and sterilized with gasoline (Menchaca).
According to Isidoro Ramírez, an
ex-bracero, “in the center they put you up against the wall, and the
contractors came like they were coming to buy livestock” (Smithsonian).
“Growers look at human beings as implements. But if they had any consideration
for the torture that people go through, they would give up the short-handled hoe,”
Cesar said in 1969 (Farris). Saturnino González Díaz, an ex-bracero, said
“There was a person that checked your hands. If your hands had calluses, rural
people could work” (Smithsonian). These men were treated like livestock going
up for auction. It would be reasonable for these men to undergo physicals so
the growers could feel they were obtaining a healthy individual; however, every
aspect of their bodies was inspected regardless of their humility. This
influenced braceros to hide any minor flaws in their bodies. It was almost as
if the program was using a Spartan society model where only the perfect
specimen are able to survive and the others are thrown off the cliff back into
Mexico. They wanted only healthy and experienced men, which can be seen as
understandable but the way they examined each person neglected their natural
born rights as human beings. As shown below the braceros were corralled into
trailers and were closely packed together like animals.
Feliciano Marín’s alien laborer’s
identification card from 1957, shown below, shows how the Bracero Program
neglected to treat its participants as people. It simply has a picture of the
individual without what make someone “civilized,” a name, with some
governmental jargon on the front. Typically the name and other information were
written on the back. The lack of a name being present on the front of the card
is almost as if the United States government is saying your good enough to come
and work in the United States, but all you are to us is a face and a number.
This card allowed them to work in the United States without actually being a
citizen. It was supposed to allow the worker to not have to fear deportation
until their contract ended; however, there were some incidents were a mass
deportation was done and some braceros were caught in the net and deported.