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COVID-19 Florida Farmworkers Collection

 Collection
Identifier: MSS 0607

Scope and Content

The collection includes digital content captured from January 2020 to January 2022. The collection is organized into seven series in chronological order, with the exception of the Social Media and Websites Series, which are alphabetical by organization/group. A detailed spreadsheet that provides additional information on the collection inventory can be accessed here.

Series 1. News Articles - Contains newspaper articles with topics on COVID-19 outbreaks among Florida farmworkers, disparities in vaccination of migrants, deportation, protests against targeted immigration and treatment of children in "detention centers," and the risk of coronavirus infection in farmworkers and their families. Also covered are topics related to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis' statements blaming Hispanic migrants for coronavirus outbreaks, the impact of COVID-19 on the education of Florida's migrant students, and how marginalized communities helped each other during the pandemic.

Series 2. UF IFAS Extension - Contains articles, videos, blog posts, flyers, word documents, and presentations from the University of Florida's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS). This series covers topics related to COVID-19 testing, pest management, health risk factors of farmworkers, Spanish-language resources on COVID-19, safety training sessions, protection of agricultural communities during the pandemic, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance for agricultural workspaces.

Series 3. Research Studies and Polls - Contains research studies related to the mental health and health risks of farmworkers during the pandemic, a COVID-19 help guide for farmworkers, and reports related to the experiences of food chain workers who organized campaigns in their workplaces to demand better working and living conditions.

Series 4. Social Media - Contains Facebook posts from different farmworkers, human rights, and government organizations in Florida, California, and North Carolina relating to the prevention of coronavirus, testing sites, vaccination, and the impact of COVID-19 on farmworkers.

Series 5. Petitions and GoFundMes - Contains online petitions and fundraising events held to financially assist immigrants, farm and food chain workers.

Series 6. Videos - Contains videos posted on YouTube, Facebook Live, and the Cornell University website. Includes topics related to general information about COVID-19, lockdowns in Florida, immigrants' concerns, humanitarian aid, racism towards immigrants, lack of protection and economic aid, and solidary for farmworkers during the pandemic.

Series 7. Contains websites crawled through the University of Florida's subscription to Archive-It. The full collection of websites can be viewed here.

Dates

  • Creation: 2020 - 2022

Language of Materials

Includes materials written in Spanish and English.

Access

Large parts of this collection are only available electronically and may have copyright restrictions limiting use and access. Please consult with an archivist before requesting materials.

Biographical/Historical Note

The virus that causes coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is called Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that was first identified during an outbreak investigation in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. COVID-19 is a respiratory disease that can be transmitted from person to person.

In March 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic. The virus can be fatal and has caused millions of deaths worldwide, as well as long-term health problems in some people who contracted the illness.

On December 10, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted emergency use authorization for the first time for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. On December 14, 2020, the first doses of the vaccine were administered and mass vaccinations began.

Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that the pandemic has had a disproportionate impact on people from historically underrepresented and racialized communities in the United States. Florida, where Hispanic represents a large proportion of the overall population (26%), was one of the communities most affected by the coronavirus. Immigrants, both documented and undocumented, make up the majority of workers in "essential industries," such as agriculture and food production. Florida’s farmworkers have been particularly affected since the beginning of the pandemic. The coronavirus has contributed to a detrimental quality of life for these already vulnerable communities. Factors such as access to adequate health care, poor working conditions, unemployment benefits, reliable transportation, job opportunities, food and housing security, fear of deportation, language barriers, and inability to qualify and receive government assistance are some of the difficulties farmworkers faced.

The purposed of the COVID-19 Florida Farmworkers Collection was to create an archive of snapshots of relevant digital content that capture the impact that COVID-19 had on farmworkers in Florida. It is part of the Florida Latin American and Caribbean Diaspora Initiative at the University of Florida's Latin American and Caribbean Collection, which has the goal to identify, document, preserve and provide access to the experience of Latin American and Caribbean immigrants in the state. It began with existing documents at the George A. Smathers Libraries; it is now moving in the direction of community-driven collections. The project funded by the Center for Arts Migration and Entrepreneurship (CAME) seeks to capture digital content considered as ephemeral, but that captures the voices, experiences, and opinions of people who are frequently marginalized and underrepresented, such as that of the Mexican, Central American, and Haitian farmworkers who live and work in Florida. The project documents the challenges that COVID-19 has presented them, as well as the innovative ways in which they adapt and survive.

Extent

32.1 Gigabytes

Abstract

Digital content captured from websites, social media sites, newspapers, and the University of Florida's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) about Florida farmworkers during the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020-2022.

Location

University of Florida Smathers Library Building

Alternate Form of Finding Aid

This guide is available in Spanish at https://www.uflib.ufl.edu/findingaids/Spanish/mss0607.pdf.

Acquisition Information

Collection created by the University of Florida, Special and Area Studies Collections (SASC) Department as part of a Center for Arts, Migration and Entrepreneurship (CAME) Program: Group Faculty Research Projects grant in 2020-2022.

Related Materials

Documenting History: Farmworkers in Florida During Covid-19, at University of Florida Digital Collection.

FSU COVID-19 Community Experience Project, at Florida State University Digital Library.

University of Miami Documenting COVID-19 Collection.

Cubans and COVID-19 Twitter Archive, University of Miami Libraries.

Title
A Guide to the COVID-19 Florida Farmworkers Collection
Status
Completed
Author
Finding aid created by Nelissa Caraballo-Ramos and Matt Kruse.
Date
February 2022
Description rules
Finding Aid Prepared Using Dacs
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Description is written in English.
Sponsor
Center for Arts, Migration and Entrepreneurship (CAME) Program: Group Faculty Research Projects

Repository Details

Part of the Special and Area Studies Collections, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida Repository

Contact:
George A. Smathers Libraries
PO Box 117005
Gainesville Florida 32611-7005 United States of America
352-273-2755