On April 14-15, John is speaking at Washington State University.
In May, he will be taking part in the National Association of Community Health Center's annual conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Currently, John Bowe is busy researching an article for the New Yorker in the rice paddies of northern Thailand. The piece is deals with labor recruiters and the hundreds of Thai and Vietnamese workers who pay $20,000 to labor recruiters for the privilege of coming to the U.S. to work as farm workers. Oftentimes, upon arrival, their passports are taken, they are beaten, their wages are unpaid, and the workload and contract terms are far less than was promised.
This isn't just an isolated little case: the operation is playing out over 14 states across America. The main argument of the piece is that allowing foreigners to enter the U.S. as non-citizens is a bad idea, even if there are compassionate rationales for allowing it. If we really want to improve the lives of poor foreigners while standing by the ideals we stand for, we have to have the political courage to allow and stand by a democratic vote: how do American workers feel? How do employers feel? How many foreigners do we wish to allow to join our country as full, legal American citizens? Let's decide, bust a move, and move on.
Our failure to settle on a coherent immigration policy has significantly eroded the rule of law, undermining the rights of American workers and foreigners on our soil.