Justice spokesman for Migrant Workers Chris Ramsaroop said the Red Cross is guilty of offering food to staff at any of the hotels where court cases arose about food quality. The Attorney General of Ontario showed that the Red Cross had been sent to Windsor’s domain to assist quarantined migrant personnel, but did not specify which hotels. The Red Cross has also failed to show which hotels.
Photo courtesy of Chris Ramsaroop
Photo courtesy of Chris Ramsaroop
Migrants “want foods that are culturally adequate and healthy,” said Ramsaroop, who has won court cases with photographs in recent weeks.
“They’re angry. There is anger and resentment,” Ramsaroop said. “There’s hunger, anxiety.”
Many employees come from Jamaica, Guatemala and Mexico, so they need foods that reflect their culture, foods they are used to and can enjoy,” Ramsaroop said, adding that none of the foods seem to be nutritionally adequate.
Red Cross spokeswoman MairiAnna Bachynsky said the company offers meals, snacks and other hygiene and convenience items in two places for others who have recently been isolated. He said the Red Cross “deals with disorders as they arise” and that representatives, in addition to local chiefs, continually touch others to assess their food needs.
“Some examples come with larger portion requests, vegetarian and vegan demands, express types of food and other portions, among others,” Bachynsky said. These requests and non-public needs are still met at all times through the user staff who are referred to.”
Bachynsky said the factor had been caught up his attention several times, but specified when he first learned.
A spokesman for Ontario Attorney General Stephen Warner said in a statement that the province had told the Canadian Red Cross to provide “housing and aid services” to agricultural workers.
They now combine to address complaints, “including arguing with staff about their personal food tastes so staff get the right supplies,” Warner said.
Photo courtesy of Chris Ramsaroop
Ramsaroop said they were putting their food on the floor like this. Photo courtesy of Ramsaroop
Photo courtesy of Chris Ramsaroop
Some staff members said they were not allowed to buy for themselves, even after completing their two-week quarantine, and employers banned visitors from delivering food, independent news site Rabble reported. Reality has led defenders to believe and execute secret methods, such as avoiding traffic cameras, so that staff can receive more food.
Inadequate and tight living situations have made migrants vulnerable to COVID-19, and many employees say their employers did not help them with pandemic isolation. A migrant employee who tested positive for COVID-19 and told reporters about poor situations on the farm was recently fired from his job.
Ontario Prime Minister Doug Ford, who in the past had rejected the concept of the COVID-19 mandatory test, said the scenario was so bad at the time that he was contemplating forcing employers to test migrant farming personnel.
But the situations they face when they are remote still want to be addressed, Ramsaroop said.
Photo courtesy of Chris Ramsaroop
The Red Cross is not accepting donations at this time, however, Ramsaroop said his team is looking to supplement the food presented to migrant staff with additional food and snacks. The current state of food to be served exposes broader systemic racism and the barriers that harm migrant staff, he added.
“The other people who feed us are hungry and this is a testament to the general situations facing migrant workers,” he said, adding that the pandemic had only exacerbated long-standing problems.
Follow Anya Zoledziowski on Twitter.