1960: "Harvest of Shame"

[schueaj]

I like their accents :)

[hamhawk67]

omg 14 kids at 29 years old!!!

[ourglasslake]

@hamhawk67 That part blew my mind. I've seen this film several times but somehow missed that.

[DammitDrag]

I was born and raised in Pahokee Florida and I am here to tell you that the migrant laborers were paid good for harvesting the crops, not one person was mistreated by the farmers around the Lake.

The average person that harvested could make .32 to .37 cents per hamper of beans and the hard workers could pick 75 to 80 hampers of beans EACH day., That's close to $30.00 daily and that was pretty good wages back in the 40's

[brno22504]

@DammitDrag there was a shift between civil rights era democrats and modern/ civil rights era republicans and modern ones; in fact my grandfather and all other black people were republican until the rise of the dixiecrats and the "southern strategy" (hint during the 60s the republicans believed they could gain power by becoming "conservative i.e. hating the poor and minorities" - and the democrats switched and believed they could gain power by controling the poor and minorities).

[DammitDrag]

@brno22504 Yes Sir you are right, Still I lived in a small isolated community and we ALL got along.

I never ever saw any of the family farmers mistreat anyone, U.S. Sugar was an entirely different story though.

[dnice4732]

@DammitDrag sure u sound stupid

[DammitDrag]

@dnice4732 Gee thanks dunce, 

[alvinweasel]

This documentary was a sham. Murrow concocted untrue depictions of the living conditions in Belle Glade, Fl. A friend of mine, now deceased was in charge of the Housing Project where Murrow looked for exceptions rather than the rule to make Belle Glade and the farming community look bad. It may be one of the most celebratred documentaries but when it came to what happened in Belle Glade, Murrow was dishonest.

[jorvelort]

We are all condemned to repeat the history we don't know. Too many people NOWADAYS dump on the poor and the disenfranchised while glorifying the rich and powerful. Too many politicians are interested only in defending the interests of the "job creators" while dismissing their workers as losers who have no right to demand social justice and dignity.

[DHY2KA]

No worry today.. The illegal aliens take care of the jobs and the taxpayers take care of the poor working folks... They don't have to work anymore. Just suckle on the teat of the federal govt.. for their meager existence..

[edgarder]

there's a new documentary that compares this video to today's working conditions and they're still similar. The video is not as boring as this one. The name of the documentary is "Harvest of dignity".

[TehEliteOne]

#ROCKS

[TurboKittyGIR]

THANK GOODNESS THIS IS STILL HERE Edward R Murrow #ROCKS

[546mh]

Leave it to Edward R. Murrow to open up a can of whoop-ass on the American conscience,and boy howdy do we need it!

[KernelGaddafi]

boring and gay

[CaptainSpecialMan]

@KernelGaddafi

ur gay

[BeaveHolio]

Black people having jobs = slaves

[waveali]

This was back when TV actually reported on something that was actually important.

[phortek]

The irony that this is sponsored by Phillip Morris, the greatest purveyors of poison in this nation.

[DammitDrag]

@phortek Ya no shit.

[altscribe]

We have a new Edward R Murrow, his name is Keith Olberman - the best journalist in America.

[disrxt]

This is the Tea Bagger ideal for America. An Ayn Rand vision of social Darwinism. Despite all their rhetoric of family values they would abandon the social safety net in favor of letting the market decide. Claiming to be Christians they ignore the instruction of their precious Jesus to care for their brother seeing the down trodden as deserving of their circumstances.

[rickey5353]

I was shown this movie in elementary school. It is still disturbing to revisit.

[timwhited]

Edward R. Murrow was a secret Communist who made this Documentary to Make America look bad and not to expose the plight of the American farm worker. these are the jobs that supposedly American workers wont do anymore thanks to the Illegal Aliens stealing them from poor white and black people.

Harvest of Shame was used as Soviet Propaganda in 1961. Pehaps this is the real reason Murrow made the film.

[disrxt]

@timwhited You sir are scum bag. Pull your head out of Ayn Rand's ass long enough to look up the word compassion!

[RightWingHunter666]

@timwhited Are you serious you mindless tool. Go sit down somewhere and go kill yourself for typing that ignorant mindlessness. 

[brno22504]

this is the type of bullshit conservatives want us to forget; we will never forget crakkkers!

[ACS07]

@brno22504 - what?? your comment doesn't make much sense. why would conservative want you to forget this?

answer here is regulated capitalism - making sure workers are paid enough to live off of - not more government interventions using extra tax dollars.

"crackers" ? ...what about the 3 black tea party leaders? and Larry Elder?

10 top cities w highest poverty rates run by Dems and have been for last 50 + yrs. God forbid they ever give an R or Independent a try.

[brno22504]

@ACS07 you need to read a book; crackers were the people who whipped slaves who dared to upset the order of the plantation; many times the white overseers would get good "negros" (example larry elder and the 3 black tea party leaders) to do their bidding for them! the top 100 poorest places in america (they are poorer than any other city/urban area) are on indian reservations- kinda makes YOU think native americans are the most liberal people but the truth is this nation is built on exploitation

[ACS07]

@brno22504 - sorry, forgot my original comment (and don't see it) but (most) Nat Amer.s are some of the poorest b/c they depend & wait on the gov for handouts now. The Nat Amer.s doing well got off the reservations (gov land) and started their own businesses (and have their own land now).

Btw, top 10 cities w highest poverty rates run by Dems and have been last 50 + yrs. God forbid they ever give a R or Independent a try.

[DammitDrag]

@brno22504 Better do some reading yourself, the Democrats were the "crackers" and Republicans comprise the Tea Party.

The democRATS have been driving slaves and burning crosses for centuries.

[DammitDrag]

@DammitDrag Exactly.

[amike401]

Thank you so much for posting this and making it generally available. These days, organized labor is under threat, and we need to be reminded of the conditions to which people without power are reduced. We need another Edward R. Murrow for our times.

[phortek]

@amike401 Organized Labor isn't the answer, these conditions are a symptom of unconscious capitalism. The evil that has run unchecked and ruined our water, polluted our oceans, and poisoned our soil.

[spacepatrolman]

@amike401 diane sawyer is being another edward r. murrow with the child labor harvset of shame report in youtube

[mrsaliciab]

I'm from & currently in Belle Glade. The repercussions of this form of slavery was done here still affects the people here. Many farmers here do little to nothing from the communities here. Many of the people live in the buildings you see in this film & racism and injustice is still live & well. Tragic!

[everkins]

Oh god, the treatment of migrant workers. This is unbelievable... How can people treat people so horrible and make their lives so much harder then it needs to be.

[RayWilliamJohansen]

@everkins

i dont think its like that anymore

[mreloid]

@RayWilliamJohansen it's very much like that, only now they are all hispanic.

[RayWilliamJohansen]

i noticed the workers are working very slow

i am sure there is a reasonable explanation

but when i worked with my dad

we had to work fast

[sullydudeismyhomie]

and??

[RayWilliamJohansen]

@sullydudeismyhomie

about what ?