Daffodil Altan and Andrés Cediel show viewers an often ignored perspective

Katie Baneck

kb271219@ohio.edu

Illustration by Katie Baneck

Daffodil Altan and Andrés Cediel spoke at the 2022 Schuneman Symposium on Photojournalism and New Media at Ohio University. The presentation centered on producing an episode of Frontline titled "Covid's Hidden Toll," which Altan and Cediel wrote, produced, and directed. The episode focused on the struggles facing the Salinas Valley region of southern California as the Covid-19 pandemic began in early 2020.

Salinas Valley is where the majority of the leafy greens are produced in the United States. Unfortunately, many farmworkers are undocumented immigrants, and exploitation runs rampant in this area.

At the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, there was so much uncertainty. No one knew how to protect themselves from the virus. 

As for the Salinas Valley case, many workers were scared and uncomfortable with the conditions they were being forced to work in. 

The owners and executives of those very successful farming companies were not providing their employees with adequate safety precautions or personal protective equipment.

The farmworkers were deemed essential workers, and with that came the expectation that they would continue to work. However, unlike other essential workers, like nurses, farmworkers were not given any way to keep themselves safe.

"Covid's Hidden Toll" highlighted some of the personal stories of those affected by the unsafe working conditions.

The episode included interviews with meatpacking plant employees, field workers, a politician, an owner of one farming operation, and other employees working in the Salinas Valley.

This episode brought forward a perspective that many Americans aren't aware of. People don't like to think about where their food comes from. So as a result, people are continually blind to the harsh conditions the people in these jobs face by ignoring the food production process every day.

There are many issues surrounding the treatment of farmworkers in the United States. For starters, there are the low wages they are paid, the job insecurity, the threat of being deported, the lack of affordable healthcare, and the list goes on and on.

These workers are exploited at every turn. The laws and the societal norms surrounding being a farmworker make it impossible to get ahead or stand up for what you need without being fired.

This episode of Frontline brought many issues to the table, and it gave a face to this struggle. Farmworkers need a voice – Daffodil Altan and Andrés Cediel produced this episode to do just that.