Reply #19: How it works.

[Heidi]

Thank you, TroubleMan, for your insightful post. I agree 100 percent.

I was a journalist in a community that actually spent economic development funds to entice a Tyson (formerly IBP) meatpacking plant to come to town, fully knowing the company's environmental record and long track record of recruiting immigrant workers in Mexico. The community "fathers" also leveraged the area's economic desperation following the farm crisis of the mid 1980s to stir community support for the company, with assurances that it would improve conditions for local farmers and ranchers.

What were the first steps our county (and city) officials took to insure a "smooth" transition for the new workers and long-time residents? Launching a campaign of fear, which included a huge bond issue to build a new law enforcement center; enacting special zoning laws putting "affordable housing" (mobile home parks) outside the community core, effectively ghetto-izing these workers and their families; and de-annexing the meat processing plant from the city limits, so that its IBP/Tyson wouldn't have to pay city property taxes.