© Matt Black, undated, A Mixtec immigrant picks raisin grapes in Fowler, California

DUST STORIES / Part 3 of 3

Over 100,000 indigenous Mexican immigrants, mostly Mixtecos, Zapotecos and Triquis, from the state of Oaxaca, are now estimated to be living in the United States. They are among the most isolated immigrants ever to arrive in America. Some speak only their indigenous language, and some come from villages without cars, electricity, or indoor plumbing.

In California’s San Joaquin Valley, where over half of these new migrants have settled, they are quickly becoming a new rural underclass. Living on the fringes of the Valley’s farm labor economy, and isolated by their culture and language, they suffer some of the worst abuses and exploitation in the country. (+)

» read part 1
» read part 2