Apuntes de campo es el blog donde los estudiantes de Estudiantes en Acción con Campesinos (SAF) comparten historias de su trabajo directo en el campo con los trabajadores, el trabajo organizativo de base y las actividades de defensoría. Y también donde los trabajadores agrícolas comparten sus propias historias y esperanzas de cambio, escribiendo en el lenguaje que les resulte más cómodo a cada uno.
Growing the Future: Why Farmworker Justice Begins with Youth Leadership
By: Ramon Zepeda, SAF Alumni Introduction I first became involved with SAF in 2005. At the time, I was a young person trying to understand my place in the world, my family’s struggles, and the systems that shaped our lives. Over the years, I stayed connected—as an alum, a board member, a staff member, and now as someone doing economic justice work in Virginia. No matter where life has taken me, SAF has remained a constant part of who I am and how I understand leadership, justice, and community. My journey with SAF eventually led me to join staff in…
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Youth Voices on Farmworker Justice
By: 2025 Levante Leader Institute Youth Members Miranda Sophmore, Johnston County Farmworker justice starts with youth leadership because young people carry both the lived experiences and responsibility of shaping a more stable future and refuse to let those experiences be ignored. Many of us grow up witnessing the sacrifices workers make every day, long hours, physical exhaustion, and being undervalued despite the work that farmworkers are expected to give everything while receiving so little in return. These experiences shaped my voice early on and pushed me to speak up, even when it feels uncomfortable or challenging. I speak not only for myself,…
“Maybe I Am Not Equal to the Task”: A Thanksgiving Reflection
by Sylvia Zapata, Political Scientist, SAF Executive Director Doubt, Deadlines, and Touching Bottom Ty Herndon’s 1999 release I Can’t Do It All explores the fear of falling short. While Ty was singing about losing out on romantic love, that phrase, along with all its accompanying lyrics, made me think about how I felt that verse in my soul and how I have often thought, “Maybe, I am just not equal to the task.” Maybe the fear and anxiety that has me staring down the calendar, and the clock, with my mind racing and my hands frozen until “just the right time” triggers frenzied movement and submissions at 11:59 pm for a midnight…
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This Shaped Who I am Today...
My name is Jacqueline, [I am] a daughter of immigrants and former farm workers. My parents originally Mexico, later migrated to the United States. I was born and raised in North Carolina with my ten siblings. Growing up, there wasn’t always much to do [especially when] many of my older sisters often went out with their friends, and the large age gap made it harder for me to be included. [So], I spent most of my time playing active games with my brothers. Before we had access to WiFi, those games became our main source of fun and creativity. Because…
This Is Not The End
I am so grateful to have been given the opportunity to be part of the 2025 ITF summer cohort. It has been a well rounded experience full of both ups and downs. My placement was National Black Worker Center where I learned the art of organizing. It’s one thing to be part of a movement, but it’s definitely another thing to organize it. From meetings, paperwork, getting people to signup/ register, securing space, securing funding and most importantly, delivering the message to the people. These are all exciting “behind” the scenes work that I enjoyed. A very important lesson that…
Their Courage to Travel So Far From Home
[Editor’s Note: The following sentence has been added for context to clarify which experience the student is reflecting on in response to the prompt.] One day that truly stuck with me during my placement was when we visited the farmworker camps. I'd have to repeat that the visits themselves are the most memorable moments. Talking with farmworkers who just came back from hard work under the sun, some having been at the camp decades, others just days. Hearing their courage to travel so far from home in order to provide more for their families. Hearing their aspirations for the future,…