News

Ozomatli To Honor Florida Farm Laborers in Concert

Photo by Sandra Dahdah

 

Genre-hoppers Ozomatli have always lent a hand to worthy causes. They've commemorated in song historic occurences like the rebuilding of New Orleans post-Hurricane Katrina and immigrant marches in Los Angeles. Now they're shining a light on the lives of farm laborers in Florida.

 

The Latin rock-rap-funk fellas are teaming with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers to celebrate these employees and to encourage Wendy's and Publix to rethink their produce purchasing. The March 21 event in St. Petersburg will also feature performances by La Santa Cecilia and Ruby Velle & the Soulphonics.

 

The New York Times detailed atrocities commited against the Florida tomato pickers, particularly the women. Sexual abuse, low or no wages and generally poor work environments pummeled many of these laborers until the Fair Food Program began to take hold last year. Thanks to these efforts, giant retailers such as Walmart are only buying tomatoes from growers that treat their workers with dignity.

 

For more information on the concert, go to the CIW website.

 

 

More from Melissa Bobbitt (See All)
Permalink to
Music News Festivals
Music and Religion - Is It the Same Thing?
  Melissa Bobbitt      0

Image by Christopher Michel/Creative Commons The venerable Dalai Lama of the exiled Tibetan Monks is rumored to speak at Glastonbury 2015. While the media fawn over the prospects of the spiritualist appearing at the world-renown music...

Jan 12, 2015

Permalink to
Music
Album Review - Band of Skulls, Himalayan
  Melissa Bobbitt      0

Band of Skulls Himalayan Electric Blues Recordings The English nipped rock n roll from Americans back in the 1960s, and theyre doing it again, just as effortlessly as before. The spookily named Band of Skulls...

Apr 1, 2014