:01:03
Narrator: here is
the all-American canal.
:01:06
It runs through the desert
for miles
:01:08
Along the California-Mexico
border.
:01:10
A monument
to the vision of man,
:01:12
The canal is the life-Giving
artery of water
:01:15
That feeds
the vast farm empire
:01:17
Of the imperial valley
of southern California.
:01:20
Out of this desert wasteland,
:01:21
Man's industry has made
a flourishing garden.
:01:25
Farming in imperial valley
is a great industry.
:01:28
Here a single field
of prosaic carrots or lettuce
:01:31
Or flax or melons may be worth
a half million dollars.
:01:35
This great agricultural
empire is important to the entire United States.
:01:41
Nature never waits.
:01:42
When the crops are ready,
they must be harvested.
:01:45
This means manpower,
a vast army of farm workers
:01:50
Who must be available
when needed,
:01:51
And this army of workers comes
from our neighbor to the south--
:01:55
From Mexico--
:01:57
For the imperial valley
of California,
:01:59
Like many other farm areas
of the great southwest,
:02:02
Is almost entirely dependent
on Mexican labor.
:02:05
These workers prepare
the land and harvest the food for our tables.
:02:11
And so all along the border,
from texas to California,
:02:14
Mexican farm workers--
Braceros, they are called,
:02:18
Meaning those who work
with their hands and arms--
:02:21
Are waiting on the Mexican side
to be okayed,
:02:24
To receive the coveted American
work permits or crossing cards.
:02:28
Most of these braceros obey
the laws of both countries
:02:32
And wait at the border to
enter the United States legally
:02:35
Under the treaty
between the Mexican and American governments.
:02:39
But there are other braceros
who come and go illegally,
:02:43
Who jump the fence.
:02:44
These Mexican illegal entrants
work in the United States for a while
:02:49
And, upon returning to Mexico,
:02:50
Are often robbed
of their savings by bandits who infest both sides of the border.
:02:55
It is this problem of
human suffering and injustice about which you should know.