Skip to content
  • Home Home Home, current page.
  • Moments Moments Moments, current page.

Saved searches

  • Remove
  • In this conversation
    Verified accountProtected Tweets @
Suggested users
  • Verified accountProtected Tweets @
  • Verified accountProtected Tweets @
  • Language: English
    • Bahasa Indonesia
    • Bahasa Melayu
    • Català
    • Čeština
    • Dansk
    • Deutsch
    • English UK
    • Español
    • Filipino
    • Français
    • Hrvatski
    • Italiano
    • Magyar
    • Nederlands
    • Norsk
    • Polski
    • Português
    • Română
    • Slovenčina
    • Suomi
    • Svenska
    • Tiếng Việt
    • Türkçe
    • Ελληνικά
    • Български език
    • Русский
    • Српски
    • Українська мова
    • עִבְרִית
    • العربية
    • فارسی
    • मराठी
    • हिन्दी
    • বাংলা
    • ગુજરાતી
    • தமிழ்
    • ಕನ್ನಡ
    • ภาษาไทย
    • 한국어
    • 日本語
    • 简体中文
    • 繁體中文
  • Have an account? Log in
    Have an account?
    · Forgot password?

    New to Twitter?
    Sign up
SarahTaber_bww's profile
Dr Sarah Taber
Dr Sarah Taber
Dr Sarah Taber
@SarahTaber_bww

Tweets

Dr Sarah Taber

@SarahTaber_bww

Crop scientist, ex-farmworker, industrial safety pro. She/her.

Fayetteville, NC
Joined November 2014

Tweets

  • © 2021 Twitter
  • About
  • Help Center
  • Terms
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies
  • Ads info
Dismiss
Previous
Next

Go to a person's profile

Saved searches

  • Remove
  • In this conversation
    Verified accountProtected Tweets @
Suggested users
  • Verified accountProtected Tweets @
  • Verified accountProtected Tweets @

Promote this Tweet

Block

  • Tweet with a location

    You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more

    Your lists

    Create a new list


    Under 100 characters, optional

    Privacy

    Copy link to Tweet

    Embed this Tweet

    Embed this Video

    Add this Tweet to your website by copying the code below. Learn more

    Add this video to your website by copying the code below. Learn more

    Hmm, there was a problem reaching the server.

    By embedding Twitter content in your website or app, you are agreeing to the Twitter Developer Agreement and Developer Policy.

    Preview

    Why you're seeing this ad

    Log in to Twitter

    · Forgot password?
    Don't have an account? Sign up »

    Sign up for Twitter

    Not on Twitter? Sign up, tune into the things you care about, and get updates as they happen.

    Sign up
    Have an account? Log in »

    Two-way (sending and receiving) short codes:

    Country Code For customers of
    United States 40404 (any)
    Canada 21212 (any)
    United Kingdom 86444 Vodafone, Orange, 3, O2
    Brazil 40404 Nextel, TIM
    Haiti 40404 Digicel, Voila
    Ireland 51210 Vodafone, O2
    India 53000 Bharti Airtel, Videocon, Reliance
    Indonesia 89887 AXIS, 3, Telkomsel, Indosat, XL Axiata
    Italy 4880804 Wind
    3424486444 Vodafone
    » See SMS short codes for other countries

    Confirmation

     

    Welcome home!

    This timeline is where you’ll spend most of your time, getting instant updates about what matters to you.

    Tweets not working for you?

    Hover over the profile pic and click the Following button to unfollow any account.

    Say a lot with a little

    When you see a Tweet you love, tap the heart — it lets the person who wrote it know you shared the love.

    Spread the word

    The fastest way to share someone else’s Tweet with your followers is with a Retweet. Tap the icon to send it instantly.

    Join the conversation

    Add your thoughts about any Tweet with a Reply. Find a topic you’re passionate about, and jump right in.

    Learn the latest

    Get instant insight into what people are talking about now.

    Get more of what you love

    Follow more accounts to get instant updates about topics you care about.

    Find what's happening

    See the latest conversations about any topic instantly.

    Never miss a Moment

    Catch up instantly on the best stories happening as they unfold.

    1. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

      Apropos of nothing: the dairy industry is so dependent on straight-up human trafficking, farmers have figured out the only way to avoid prosecution is constantly cry about how hard they have it. That way everyone's too busy going "Shh there, there" to look at what they're doing.

      36 replies 1,173 retweets 3,625 likes
      Show this thread
    2. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

      There's not a huge amount of reporting in the news about it, thanks to how successful the tearjerker campaign has been. But let me tell you, the farmworker whisper networks are LIT UP will all the bullshit dairy farmers are up to.

      1 reply 60 retweets 862 likes
      Show this thread
    3. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

      I mean, there's a reason Ben & Jerry's got a look at what was going on in the dairy industry & said "Oh shit, we've got to get the Coalition of Immokalee Workers in here stat." CIW is the nuclear option of farm labor orgs. Nobody calls them in lightly.https://ciw-online.org/blog/2017/10/its-a-new-day-in-dairy/ …

      6 replies 93 retweets 991 likes
      Show this thread
    4. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

      So nope, all the woeful tales coming out of the dairy industry right now are *not* just about low milk prices. It's also purposeful political messaging. tw suicide for the rest of the thread.

      1 reply 63 retweets 770 likes
      Show this thread
    5. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

      For example: most people have heard by now that "farmer suicide rates are catastrophic." They're not! When you stack up professions by suicide rate, farmers ain't even in the top 20. You know who's #1 though? Farm *workers.* Farmers' employees.https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6903a1.htm …

      6 replies 332 retweets 1,555 likes
      Show this thread
    6. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

      There are a lot of studies documenting the catastrophic rates of depression, PTSD, etc that farmworkers experience. For example: https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/full/10.1146/annurev.publhealth.27.021405.102106?amp%3Bsearc= … https://europepmc.org/backend/ptpmcrender.fcgi?accid=PMC4775294&blobtype=pdf …

      1 reply 58 retweets 688 likes
      Show this thread
    7. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

      But it all boils down to "this is how it is when you're working grueling hours far from home, everyone hates you, and you're working under extreme duress up to & often including getting straight-up trafficked."

      2 replies 65 retweets 893 likes
      Show this thread
    8. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

      Despite all of this, the idea that farmers are suffering is a lot higher in most Americans' consciousness than the idea that they're putting their workers through absolute hell- and that it's actually the workers who are doing most of the suffering.

      3 replies 135 retweets 1,059 likes
      Show this thread
    9. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

      That's because the farm lobby has purposefully latched onto a long-debunked study that bungled the numbers by counting farmworkers' suicides as farmers'.https://thecounter.org/farmer-suicide-crisis-cdc-study/ …

      2 replies 96 retweets 953 likes
      Show this thread
      Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

      In other words, the farm lobby has stolen farmworkers' deaths as their own. Even years after the error was pointed out to them. At this point, it's deliberate. It's a straight-up misinformation campaign.

      10:52 AM - 17 Dec 2020
      • 156 Retweets
      • 1,209 Likes
      • #MasksSaveLives sk8 to abolition June "Wakalix", 💎 gabs Theo Marla in blue GA! 😷🇺🇸🏳️‍🌈☮️🌊 Sean Staying the Fuck Home 🏡🥃🤘 Lola THE DH & ROB MANFRED ARE BAD FOR BASEBALL Lani Kai Vaccinated #BLM #GoDucks #BAON #RCTID
      5 replies 156 retweets 1,209 likes
        1. New conversation
        2. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          And it's not hard to see why. The myth of a farmer suicide epidemic is a great bloody shirt to wave around when asking for federal pork spending. It's helped secure the $60 BILLION or so in free money that Trump has sent farmers in the last few years.

          4 replies 57 retweets 775 likes
          Show this thread
        3. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          Meanwhile, again, farmers aren't even in the top 20 for vocations most likely to die by suicide. Farmworkers top the list by a long shot (120 per 100,000). Next are artists & musicians. After that, it's a long list of blue-collar trades.

          2 replies 74 retweets 784 likes
          Show this thread
        4. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          Steelworkers, miners, masons, roofers, auto repair techs, construction workers, machinists, millwrights, carpenters, electricians, even the folks who repair computers & office machines. Every single one of these jobs has a higher suicide rate than farmers.

          3 replies 50 retweets 731 likes
          Show this thread
        5. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          But you don't hear anything about a suicide epidemic amongst millwrights or auto repair techs, do you? That's because those jobs don't have a giant-ass powerful lobby whose job is to loudly cast them as the world's biggest victims (so give us $60B pls).

          1 reply 55 retweets 827 likes
          Show this thread
        6. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          They have unions, who have to represent a lot of different vocations. And the unions have been getting carved away by hostile legislation for decades. Meanwhile the Farm Bureau & other farm orgs have been getting bigger & pearl-clutchier by the year.

          1 reply 33 retweets 663 likes
          Show this thread
        7. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          In summary: the "farm suicide epidemic" is a misinformation campaign. People who promote it are actively and, at this point knowingly, sowing misinformation. Full stop.

          1 reply 77 retweets 773 likes
          Show this thread
        8. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          Farm country & conservatives in general aren't nearly as stupid as the center-left likes to think they are. They're really, really good at messaging. Acknowledge that & act accordingly. And if you need to, report, block, & move on.

          8 replies 97 retweets 907 likes
          Show this thread
        9. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          Folks who are serious about stopping human trafficking would be going after farmers not PornHub. It's almost like,,, they're not actually serious about it?pic.twitter.com/xBm3jYayRO

          19 replies 274 retweets 1,267 likes
          Show this thread
        10. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          This article is an absolutely amazing look at what human trafficking actually looks like within the farm community btw.https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/a23471864/devin-nunes-family-farm-iowa-california/ …

          5 replies 185 retweets 651 likes
          Show this thread
        11. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          Myth blown: "It's only the giant farms that used trafficked labor!" Oh honey if ONLY. If you really think there's some kind of first-class dividing curtain between big & small farms, you have no idea how farm country works.pic.twitter.com/8Q76RrkfCU

          Screenshot from article: "Other dairy farmers in the area helped me understand why the Nunes family might be so secretive about the farm: Midwestern dairies tend to run on undocumented labor. The northwest-Iowa dairy community is small. Most of the farmers know one another, and most belong to a regional trade group called the Western Iowa Dairy Alliance (though WIDA told me NuStar is not a member). One dairy farmer said that the threat of raids from ICE is so acute that WIDA members have discussed forming a NATO-like pact that would treat a raid on one dairy as a raid on all of them. The other pact members would provide labor to the raided dairy until it got back on its feet."
          Screenshot from article: "In every conversation I had with dairy farmers and industry insiders in northwest Iowa, it was taken a a fact that the local dairies are wholly dependent on undocumented labor."
          5 replies 57 retweets 462 likes
          Show this thread
        12. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          I love that "NATO-like pact" bullshit. ICONIC piece of misinformation. If you're a bunch of farms swapping around undocumented workers to circumvent immigration laws then what you're doing is called a "running a human trafficking ring."

          5 replies 128 retweets 771 likes
          Show this thread
        13. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          This practice isn't unique to this one corner of Iowa either. I've got reporter colleagues who've found whole networks of upstate New York family dairies "informally" funneling each other workers as well. And it's a hard story to publish bc it freaks news editors out.

          5 replies 31 retweets 372 likes
          Show this thread
        14. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          The fun thing about "sharing" workers? It makes it super-duper easy for small farms to get involved! You don't have to have your own personal connections to the Sinaloa cartel anymore!

          1 reply 27 retweets 354 likes
          Show this thread
        15. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          I love how when it comes to family farms, it's all "everyone's just neighborly and knows each other's business" and "bonds of cooperation forged over generations" and "peer-to-peer learning" until they get caught using all that social capital to do something shady.

          1 reply 29 retweets 381 likes
          Show this thread
        16. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          Then all the sudden everybody in farm country is total strangers. There's a magical first-class curtain dividing big & small farms. None of them know each other & would CERTAINLY never do something just bc literally everyone else is doing it!

          1 reply 21 retweets 308 likes
          Show this thread
        17. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          Check the way the dairy farmers in that Nunes article talk about it. There's no "well the big farms do X but the small farms do Y." They're all in the same boat, paddling in the same direction.

          1 reply 12 retweets 280 likes
          Show this thread
        18. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          The idea that there's a meaningful moral distinction between small & large farms is a fairy tale. That's a story we tell to dissociate ourselves from the realities of our society: it's built on forced labor & always has been. There ain't no wholesome past to look back to.

          1 reply 64 retweets 423 likes
          Show this thread
        19. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          The only way a dairy of basically any size has a real chance of doing w/o shady labor practices is if they're processing & selling dairy products direct to customers themselves. And that's pretty size-agnostic. You get small, medium, large, & micro-dairies doing that.

          2 replies 19 retweets 294 likes
          Show this thread
        20. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          And no, most small dairy farms do not sell direct to customers. That's why there are so many going under right now. It's how it goes when you try to pursue a bulk commodity business model and don't have the scale to pull it off.

          2 replies 16 retweets 327 likes
          Show this thread
        21. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          So again, to review: just because a farm is small doesn't mean they're virtuous. Small business owner talking here: a lot of the time being small just gives people more financial pressure & less accountability. It's EASIER to behave badly.

          11 replies 55 retweets 531 likes
          Show this thread
        22. Dr Sarah Taber‏ @SarahTaber_bww 17 Dec 2020

          Dr Sarah Taber Retweeted Dr Sarah Taber

          ps. If you're wondering about ways to farm that are built to *not* exploit people, great news, I talk about that sometimes toohttps://twitter.com/SarahTaber_bww/status/1303033211661045764 …

          Dr Sarah Taber added,

          Dr Sarah Taber @SarahTaber_bww
          All this is to say- if we're serious about fixing the food system, I think big employee-owned farm/food operations are the only way to fly. And WHAT A COINCIDENCE, they could also fix this "we're all being herded into expensive slums and it's destroying our democracy" problem.
          Show this thread
          4 replies 64 retweets 347 likes
          Show this thread
        23. End of conversation

      Loading seems to be taking a while.

      Twitter may be over capacity or experiencing a momentary hiccup. Try again or visit Twitter Status for more information.

        Promoted Tweet

        false

        • © 2021 Twitter
        • About
        • Help Center
        • Terms
        • Privacy policy
        • Cookies
        • Ads info