COACHELLA, Ca. – With music and food, Mariachi Tierra Mexican of Coachella and Mariachi Nuevo Amanecer showed their appreciation for field workers at California's SeaFront Ranch Monday.
Juan Luis and his coworkers have continued the essential work of harvesting food in the middle of a pandemic.
“I can’t stop working. I need to pay for rent, my bills and help my family” said worker Juan Luis.
Luis is from Mexico and has worked in the fields for more than five years.
While watching the mariachi perform he realized it was the first time he felt appreciated for the long hours they put in the fields.
“I can only be proud of myself and the work I have," he said. "I love working the fields, but it’s nice to feel appreciated too.”
The greatest number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the Coachella Valley are concentrated in the east valley where people are essential workers and can’t stay home to quarantine.
The majority are also undocumented and lack access to affordable healthcare or personal protective equipment.
“When the government defined who essential workers were during this COVID-19 crisis, we knew it was important to try to keep our field workers safe” said Coachella’s Mayor Steven Hernandez.