Immigration raids paralyze key California farm region as workers stay home

Immigration raids in California's Coachella Valley — a key source of the nation's produce — have upended daily life, keeping parents from fields, children from school and multiple families crowded into shared homes.Why it matters: Fear in one of the country's poorest regions shows how the Trump administration's immigration crackdown is shaking a vulnerable labor force, mostly undocumented, overwhelming churches and food banks.The raids in the region are also partly forcing the Trump administration to warn Americans of a looming food crisis brought on by its own crackdown on undocumented farmworkers.Zoom in: Axios recently interviewed more than a dozen farmworkers, volunteers, advocates and religious leaders in the Coachella Valley, who said the panic is pushing families to the brink of starvation and mental health breakdowns.They said some families with undocumented members are being reduced to one breadwinner (or none) as farmworkers opt not to work out of anxiety that a raid could nab them away.They said families are keeping U.S.-born children home from school, often over images they've seen on social media from other cities of immigration agents arresting parents in cars while picking up students.They said three-bedroom trailers have become homes to three families, sometimes accommodating as many as 15 people per dwelling, as people try to combine resources for survival. A Purépecha indigenous woman from the Mexican state of Michoacán talks in Thermal, Calif., about the fear farmworkers face in the Coachella Valley. Photo: Russell Contreras/AxiosWhat they're saying: "People are scared to even come out of the house. They just sit inside, getting depressed," farmworker organizer Rosalba De La Cruz told Axios in Spanish. "I've never seen it like this," Imelda Barragan, a farmworker, said in Spanish. She's seen periodic raids in the area over the decades. Reyes Lopez, a lead community organizer with the Inland Congregations United for Change, said the cruelty of the raids puzzles people, especially since workers are needed in this area, which can get to 115 degrees. The other side: "Under Secretary (Kristi) Noem, our brave law enforcement officers are delivering on President Trump's and the American people's mandate to arrest and deport criminal illegal aliens to make America safe," DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin tells Axios."Over one in ten young adults in America are neither employed, in higher education, nor pursuing some sort of vocational training. There is no shortage of American minds and hands to grow our labor force," White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson tells Axios. Carolina MacKnight, 67, talks in Mecca, Calif., about how some farmworker families in the Coachella Valley are on the verge of starvation. Photo: Russell Contreras/AxiosZoom out: The Coachella Valley, a desert area in Southern California that's a 2 1/2 hours drive east of Los Angeles, is a popular tourist destination with towns like Palm Springs and events like the Coachella music festival. It also supports year-round farming because of its warm, sunny climate and access to irrigation fed by the Colorado River. It employs tens of thousands of farmworkers, generating billions of dollars annually. The region produces crops during the winter months when other areas can't, helping stabilize the national food supply.The valley is one of the country's leading producers of winter vegetables and fruits, particularly dates, leafy greens, bell peppers, table grapes and citrus fruits. Reyes Lopez, a lead community organizer with the Inland Congregations United for Change, talks in Mecca, Calif., about the challenges undocumented farmworkers in the Coachella Valley are facing. Photo: Russell Contreras/AxiosBetween the lines: Religious and multifaith groups like PICO California and Catholic archdioceses are stepping in to help farmworkers.Axios witnessed volunteers and fellow farmworkers with permanent residency status organize a food bank at Mission San Juan Diego in Mecca, Calif. Dozens of cars of needy farmworkers lined up for three days' worth of donated food. Meanwhile, some struggling families are taking in U.S.-born children of parents recently deported.Over 65% of people in the Eastern Coachella Valley live in poverty, according to the Coachella Valley Rescue Mission.The bottom line: Rev. Rocendo Herrera of Our Lady of Guadalupe Sanctuary in Mecca tells Axios that since the raids, every week the Catholic church gets around 4,000 people for services."People are looking to God for answers."

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