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On April 6, 1980, the Canadian Farmworkers Union came into existence. This film documents the conditions among Chinese and East Indian immigrant workers in British Columbia that provoked the formation of the union, and the response of growers and labor contractors to the threat of unionization. Made over a period of two years, the film is eloquent testimony to the progress of the workers’ movement from the first stirrings of militancy to the energetic canvassing of union members.
In his third film, Anan Patwardhan, along with Jim Monro, documents the formation of the Canadian Farmworkers Union, examining the treatment of exploited East Indian and Chinese immigrants. In comparison to the regimented, talking-head-centric structure of Prisoners of Conscience, this film is structured like a pendulum, rocking back and forth between the harsh conditions of the workers and their attempts to organise. Perhaps the most essential aspect of this documentary is how confidently it charts the complex terrain of labour relations which is largely defined, both amongst proletariat and bourgeoisie, by multi-racial solidarity: on one hand, the East Indian immigrant fruit-pickers, who started the union and constitute the bulk of it and its leadership, and the white Canadian farm-workers; on the other, the white farm-owners who, together with the East Indian labour contractors, are enthusiastic parasites. If nothing else, it's astounding how casually evil the farm-owners and the contractors are willing to be when on camera.
Canada
USA
