Pesante Support the South Central Farmers Struggle for Land and Life!



Los Angeles—The Philippine Peasant Support Network (Pesante), a Filipino peasant, environmental and human rights advocacy network in the United States wholeheartedly support the struggle of 450 families in the South Central Farms that is now under the threat of land grabbing of the capitalist groups in Los Angeles.

For two weeks now, South Central Farmer supporters and advocates like singer Joan Baez, KPFK Jerry Quickley, actors Danny Glover and Darryl Hannah other have stayed, conducted vigil and expressed their support to the farmers struggle.

The 15 acre farm located in the old Alameda corridor- the former industrial enclave of Los Angeles that closed down as a result of the end of the Vietnam war in 1975 was the home and the farm for these Los Angeles farmers and their families until the city and the capitalist decided to grab and make use of these arable land and turn it to a more profitable business. This is a classic case of capitalist exploitation and capitalist takeover of agriculture not letting any form of social farming for any cooperative endeavor but for corporate greed.

Pesante-USA recalls the same brutal comprador bureaucrat capitalist take-over of the 14,000-hectare farms of Hacienda San Antonio and Santa Isabel in the 1980-82 and again the Cojuanco planned cassava plantations and corporate farming in Isabela in 2000. There are also plans to turn agricultural lands to coal mining that will dislocate a lot of peasant and turn them into mining workers in the forest region of Isabela in Northern Philippines. The same thing is happening in South Central Los Angeles, in a capitalist America!

Filipinos, Koreans, Indian and other peasants in Asia can relate to the plight of South Central farmers thus, the outpouring of support from Asian and Pacific Islanders is very evident and well known. Our organizations like the KmB-Pro People Youth, JFAV, People's CORE, Pesante and other organizations have expressed support for the South Central Farmers since the mass actions began in February 18, 2006 in Los Angeles City Hall.

Their fight for land and life is the struggle of Filipino farmers too!! An injury for one, is an injury for all!!

Long Live International Solidarity!!