New Amer. Caucus Co-Chair: Smithfield’s Anti-Immigrant Claims Are Attempt to Blame Victims
WASHINGTON, DC – Congresswoman Norma J. Torres (CA-35), the only Central American immigrant serving in Congress and Co-Chair of the New American Caucus, today responded to Smithfield Foods' claim that its Sioux Falls pork processing plant became a COVID-19 cluster because of "living circumstances in certain cultures" of its employees.
With more than 700 of 3,700 employees now infected, a spokeswoman for Smithfield blamed the spread on the facility's "large immigrant population."
The anti-immigrant rhetoric comes as reporters uncovered a culture of indifference toward worker lives at the plant, from tepid efforts to notify workers once an employee tested positive, to uneven response protocols that left hundreds exposed, to COVID-related signs printed only in English while safety signs are normally printed in five languages, to an 18-day delay from the time of the first infection to the time that the facility was fully closed for cleaning, and much more.
Congresswoman Torres released the following statement:
"First Smithfield placed every one of its employees at risk for a COVID infection with negligent policies and delayed response times, and now they're scapegoating the very people whose lives they endangered," Rep. Torres said. "This behavior is abhorrent. People are in grave danger as a result of their dithering, and all they're willing to do is point a xenophobic finger of blame at their own victims.
"Trying times can bring out the best in us, and Smithfield's employees exemplified that by showing up every day to help feed America despite a pandemic swirling around them," Rep. Torres continued."Sadly, their management is showing how difficult times can bring out the worst in us too. There are depths of shame that words can't truly describe, and that is exactly where Smithfield's leadership is right now."
Congresswoman Torres founded the New American Caucus in 2017 to ensure a voice in Congress for first generation Americans. Caucus members advocate on behalf of immigrant rights on Capitol Hill.
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