Evolving Opportunities

In this video, there is more information about how Immokalee evolved throughout the century came into play. Immokalee survived the development of the casinos, a bomb training base was turned into an airport, the Deep Rail System was invented, and oil was introduced. The community was still very much involved in agriculture. The farmers not only had cattle ranching, but vegetable farming as well. Some farmers, like Percy Brown, decided to work in vegetable farming because it made more money. This video discussed the hard times in Immokalee, such as the high labor demands and the Freeze of 1989; however, the video also discussed how successful agriculture became. After Fidel Castro took over Cuba’s farming, Florida’s farming business grew and became more successful. Today, farmers believe that the agricultural industry isn’t the same because of the mechanical methods that have come into play, which is replacing the human workers. This is similar to where I grew up in Palm Harbor. Many people were being replaced by machines because the owners didn’t have to worry about paying another employee and work was getting done in half the time.
The Immokalee community represents the New American dream, which is to be able to have a job, to support one’s family, and to be able to accept change. The change that is occurring is the machines that are replacing human workers in the farming industry and it will continue to grow. Ranch owners are worried that they won’t make enough money to support themselves and their families, which is what many families worry about today. While other farmers are worried that they will be replaced by machines because fruit and vegetables can be picked in half the time. Ten years from now, I think more than half of the workers in the farming industry will be replaced due to the mechanical methods that are expanding in the farming industry. I think families, especially parents, worry about being able to support their families financially even more now because of the way the economy is. The New American Dream is to be able to get an education and a job, to be able to pay for necessities, and to be happy. The last part of the American Dream is hard because many people are not happy when they are worried about losing their jobs.