My late grandfather immigrated from Switzerland as a farm labourer. He didn't have a lot of $. For the program thru which he came here, he had to work on the farm for a time, maybe 6 months, maybe a year, but then he moved to construction because the pay was better. 1/

He eventually met his wife, another Swiss immigrant, they started their own farm and raised 4 kids. They all became successful - in farming, insurance, and the ag industry. His grandchildren became farmers, teachers, computer scientists...a long list. 2/

About 15 years after my grandfather immigrated here, Canada established a program for farm labourers to come from Jamaica. Unlike my grandfather, these workers were only allowed to work here for a season. They were sent home after the harvest, often returning yr after yr. 3/

One official reason for this was the Jamaican workers (and later other Caribbean and Mexican workers) weren't considered 'suitable' to integrate into Canadian culture. To this day, the overwhelming majority of workers who come thru this program can't become permanent residents. 4

It is not by accident that rural Canada is so white. I hadn't really considered b4 how about my grandfather's establishment here in context of the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program, but have been considering it since writing this piece: https://www.tvo.org/article/fear-neglect-and-close-quarters-inside-ontarios-migrant-worker-health-crisis 5/