Mixteco/Indigena Community Organizing Project
Aiding and empowering indigenous Oaxacan immigrants in Ventura County.
Aiding and empowering indigenous Oaxacan immigrants in Ventura County.
Mixtecs in Ventura County
Twenty thousand indigenous Oaxacan people from southern Mexico live and work in Ventura County. Soil erosion of the ancestral farmlands of the Mixteca region and economic opportunity here have drawn Mixtecs to California in search of agricultural work.
Mixtecs have been a vital part of the Ventura County’s economic success since the 1970s. Concentrated in labor-intensive agricultural sectors such as row crops (strawberries and raspberries) and cut flowers, Mixtecs perform an increasing amount of the backbreaking labor which makes farming profitable and fresh fruits and vegetables affordable to the public. Many of the immigrant families who arrived in the 70s and 80s raised their families here—with children now in college or successfully employed. Many have become US citizens.
More recently-arrived Mixtec immigrants have not been as fortunate. Mixtecs in Ventura County--and throughout the state--are culturally and linguistically isolated. Many are illiterate, and most speak neither Spanish nor English, but only their native language, Mixteco. As a result, they face exploitation and discrimination in labor, housing, and everyday life. Life is extremely difficult for these young hardworking, family-oriented people with deeply rooted cultural beliefs. Most live in extreme poverty and lack basic provisions such as adequate housing, food, clothing, and other necessities of life. Central to their struggle is the fact that they cannot communicate with people beyond their own indigenous community, thus impeding their ability to obtain appropriate healthcare, educate themselves and their children, negotiate with their employers to improve their work situation, and exercise their basic civil rights.
MICOP’s work is aiding Mixtecs to draw on their community strengths and overcome existing barriers. The communal tradition of “tequio” or community obligation promotes a spirit of mutual assistance and community building. Our celebrations of cultural traditions such as Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), Día del Niño (Children’s Day), Guelaguetza (regional dance festival celebrating all indigenous groups), and Fiesta Navideña (Christmas) build community strength and pride, and add to the richness and diversity of Ventura County life.
