Indigenous Farm Worker Project

California Rural Legal Assistance - 030097

Abstract Number:

June 2003030097

California Rural Legal Assistance (CRLA) implemented the Indigenous Farm Worker Project in 1993 to provide legal services to Mexican and Central American indigenous farm workers, many of whom speak neither English nor Spanish. In the early 1990s, CRLA noticed an increasing growth in the indigenous farm worker community in California, many who hailed from Oaxaca and who predominantly spoke Mixteco. While CRLA's staff was well equipped to deal with Spanish speakers, CRLA initially struggled to deliver services to the indigenous farm worker communities in California. To address this barrier, CRLA partnered with Frente Indigena Oaxaquea Binacional, a community based organization comprised of representatives from the Mixtec-Zapotec communities and expanded their language capacities by initially hiring a Mixteco outreach worker. Since the early 1990s, this project has expanded and CRLA currently has seven speakers of indigenous languages on staff. The Indigenous Farm Worker Project conducts outreach and offers community legal education events to educate farm workers about their basic legal rights while also delivering assistance in labor and employment law, housing law, and public benefits issues.

CRLA has also worked towards ensuring that health care providers, social services providers, and state agencies in California are accessible to people who speak indigenous languages. To support these efforts, CRLA partnered with several community based organizations to train indigenous interpreters. CRLA hired a court certified interpreter who trained participants, many of whom now work in courtrooms, hospitals and clinics, and schools throughout California.

Contact Information:

Mike Meuter
Director
Indigenous Farm Worker Project
California Rural Legal Assistance
3 Williams Road
Salinas, CA 93905
Phone: (831) 757-5221
Fax: (831) 757-6212
Email

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