Clashing Cultures

Well, that's a sad situation of cultures in a moral and ethical clash confronting one another with what appears to be normal behaviour on one side, and atrociously sexist on the other. There are cultures where male dominance and gender devaluation of women is prominently part of their social heritage. Where men's predatory behaviour toward women is accepted as normal and simply overlooked, though the result is that women are often forcibly exposed to sexual contact. Where rape and violence may be considered the way life unfolds.

When members of that culture are dropped into another social culture they see no reason why their interaction with women of another culture shouldn't continue in a way they are most familiar and comfortable with. And that situation appears to be playing out in Leamington, Ontario. An agricultural community with a reputation for the fresh vegetables grown there, particularly tomato crops. Because there are never enough Canadians willing to do the hard work of harvesting those fields, migrant workers are brought in from abroad on a temporary work permit.

Most of those workers come from Mexico, 20% from Jamaica and the eastern Caribbean, while others are from the Philippines or various parts of Asia. A recent survey of violence against women in a number of Asian countries revealed a fairly high proportion of men admitting to rape and violence against women, including wives and girlfriends. Not that in Canada there is an absence of violence against women; an unhealthy culture of male entitlement exists to pollute the social contract of Canada as well.

But the town of 28,000 on Lake Ontario has complained about the prevalence of sexual harassment imposed upon the town's women by seasonal labourers. Sexually predatory behaviour that seems difficult to escape from. Unwelcome invitations, persistent enquiries about relationship possibilities, outspoken public comments on physical attributes. Some women living in Leamington claim that foreign workers have grabbed their genitals, making lewd gestures to ensure the pantomime is fully understood.

"We need some ideas, we need some suggestions, we need help because it's like a cancer in our community. It shouldn't be like this", complains Leamington mayor John Paterson. The problem becomes acute whenever immigrant workers are in town on weekends, cashing cheques, doing their laundry and pursuing other errands, shopping for groceries. He has asked the police services board how "sexual comments and aggressive tendencies" displayed by some migrant workers, might be contained.

One hundred percent of the complaints, he says, have been about Jamaican and 'Island' migrant workers. The complaints have raised other notions from those who try to protect the human rights of migrant workers, themselves on occasion subjected to racial slurs. The group Justicia for Migrant Workers wrote an open letter to Mr. Paterson last week of "cultural differences" used to justify the community's "adverse reactions" to migrant workers.

"Instead of dealing with sexual harassment on an individual basis, you skip right to racialized stereotypes, drawing from some of the worst parts of Canadian history. It does not escape us that the community of Leamington once supported 'sundown laws' which made it illegal for black Canadians to walk freely in the community after sunset." And the letter described multiple complaints from migrant workers attesting they have been victimized by hate crimes, sexism and racism while working in Leamington.

Before arriving for work migrant workers are provided with a booklet on Canada to alert them to some aspects of differences between their home countries and the one they are entering. The booklet contains no specifics on the differences in social norms, how the laws are meant to be respected, or what to do should they experience problems, according to the Agricultural Workers Alliance section of the United Food and Commercial Workers Canada union.  Stan Raper of the union mentions tensions arise with long periods of separation from family.

"I would argue if [a worker's] wife and kids were there, and they were living in that community, they'd be acting a little differently."

TYLER BROWNBRIDGE/The Windsor Star   Linda Tessier comments on the recent allegations of Jamaican migrant workers harassing women in the town of Leamington on Friday, August 30, 2013. Tessier said she stopped going out at night when large groups of workers spend time in town.