Transcript of segment:

Anna: In national immigration news, the Senate parliamentarian recommended that a pathway to Citizenship cannot be included in the $3.5 trillion budget proposal. While this news is disappointing, it does not deter us. It does not mark the end of our national campaign for Congress to deliver a pathway to citizenship for millions this year. We remain confident in the power of our families and communities that this is our moment. We remain confident that Congress will follow the lead of our movement and leave no stone unturned. This is our year. We’ve waited for too many years for relief for our people, and we are prepared with alternative paths to ensure our plan moves forward. 

As we talk about this plan, we can’t forget that this campaign is not for political points. Behind this campaign are the lives of millions of people who deserve dignity and relief. Here is a testimonies from one of our members in the Rio Grande Valley who will benefit from a pathway to citizenship. She and her husband are farm workers.

Please note these testimonies are in Spanish. A translated transcript will be posted on our website after the show. 

LUPE member: (Translated testimony of farmworker) “We work in the fields. In our experience, working in the fields means getting hurt. My husband hurt his hip working in the fields because he had to bend down. So he hurt his hip and the next day, he wasn't able to go to work. He missed work for more than a week. And our boss told him that if he didn't show up, that there wasn't going to be work for him anymore because he didn't want people “like that.” He didn't worry about giving us medicine or taking us to a hospital because my husband got injured at work.

“The boss only cares about his production. If you get injured, you need to figure it out on your own. To earn $2.86, you need to pick 100 bunches of cilantro. Slower colleagues take two to three hours to pick that amount of bunches. I, who have more experience, take about 20 minutes to pick 100 bunches. I end up earning about the minimum wage hourly.

“I have children. I need a driver's license. We all need that. In my experience, if you don't have a license… I'm not saying all police are racist, but some are. If you don't have a license, they'll call immigration on you. They don't care if you're coming from work or anything.

“Secondly, field work is seasonal. Here it starts in September and ends around June. And from there, there is no work for four months. And during those months, how are we suppose to pay our bills?”

Anna: Tomorrow, September twenty-first, marks the day Congress returns from recess. Hundreds of progressive activists will gather in D.C. to welcome Congress back into session. In fact, two LUPE representatives, including our co-host Daniel Diaz, are flying from Texas to D.C. today to join this day of action. Our demands are calling on legislators to deliver on their promises of immigration, climate, care, and more.