{"id":196,"date":"2018-04-11T18:25:59","date_gmt":"2018-04-11T22:25:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/huertas\/?p=196"},"modified":"2018-04-11T18:44:39","modified_gmt":"2018-04-11T22:44:39","slug":"a-conversation-with-past-intern-elena-palermo-una-conversacion-con-ex-becaria-elena-palermo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/huertas\/2018\/04\/11\/a-conversation-with-past-intern-elena-palermo-una-conversacion-con-ex-becaria-elena-palermo\/","title":{"rendered":"A Conversation with Past Intern, Elena Palermo | Una Conversaci\u00f3n con ex-becaria, Elena Palermo"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

After walking away from my afternoon with Elena, I felt a lightness you only feel after getting great advice. If you\u2019ve been keeping up with past blog posts, you know that this year we\u2019re taking a step back to catch up with Huertas alumni to see what they\u2019ve been up to since their time as an undergrad. I went into the interview with Elena with a list of rigid questions in search of simple answers. I assumed I would hear about how Elena improved her skills in collecting seed data and learning new Spanish vocab words, but instead we talked through some heavier topics.<\/span><\/p>\n

We were just 30 minutes into our conversation and she had me thinking about embracing the uncomfortable and being aware of the blind spots that privilege creates. Much of being a field intern at Huertas entails driving out to farms in Northern Vermont to collect figures from farmworkers on what crops they\u2019d like to have in their garden in the spring. When I asked about her experiences with these visits, it was clear that Elena had thought about the deeper implications of her presence.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cUnderstanding your privilege, being a young, white woman enrolled in University, driving out to someone\u2019s home who is appropriately under cover and under the radar, they welcome you into their home and you go on to talk about plants and seeds and starts in the middle of winter. That situation in itself can be kind of\u2026 awkward and funky. But being okay with that, being okay with the bumps in the road, if something didn\u2019t translate or what not.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Part of working with Huertas is understanding privilege. Being able to enter someone\u2019s home and safely leave after the visit is over is an ability often taken for granted. Although acknowledging this privilege puts us outside of our comfort zone, to do so is vital to our work as partners of the immigrant dairy worker community.<\/span><\/p>\n

As an undergrad, Elena studied food systems and nutrition. Her passion for cooking, specifically cross-culturally, has translated into her current position as outreach and education coordinator at City Market. From college to her current position, much of her time is focused on bringing education of food to the community. What troubles Elena is how often food activists focus on movements like organic or local, but forget about advocating for the very people who are producing, picking, and supporting the industry.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAs I\u2019m learning about food security and nutrition and food science and all the hot terms, [I] really want to shed light onto the farmworker movement and [ask] \u2018Hey why are the people who are producing food in our country not having access to that same food?\u2019\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Not only is this question difficult to answer, it requires a certain level of insight for consumers to even ask. In Vermont, where immigrant workers make up the bulk of the dairy industry, consumers should start asking questions about the people who produce the cheese and milk that holds up our economy. Why is it that the workers who act as the backbone for a host of industries, go invisible and unnoticed? And how can we change that fact? \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

By the way Elena talks, it\u2019s clear Huertas has had a lasting impression. Elena still lives in Burlington, and continues to be involved. Recently, she facilitated a cooking class with Huertas participant, Ale, who taught the group how to cook empanadas. Elena is also working with our current interns to screen \u201cDolores\u201d, a documentary about the life and accomplishments o<\/span>f activist and farmworker rights advocate, Dolores Huerta. Elena is committed to conversations around food access and sovereignty and continues to not only answer questions, but ask them.<\/span><\/p>\n

The \u201cDolores\u201d<\/span> screening will take place April 19<\/span>th<\/span> at 5:30 in the Waterman building on UVM campus. Stay tuned for details!<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Al salir de una entrevista con Elena, me sent\u00ed agradecida por todos los consejos que recib\u00ed. Si han estado leyendo el blog, pueden ver que este a\u00f1o hemos estado hablando con algun@s becari@s que han trabajado con Huertas en el pasado para o\u00edr sobre lo que han hecho desde su tiempo con el proyecto. Fui a la entrevista con una lista de preguntas r\u00edgidas esperando respuestas simples pero descubr\u00ed r\u00e1pidamente que la experiencia de Elena fue mucho m\u00e1s profunda y compleja de lo que yo pensaba.<\/span><\/p>\n

Estuvimos hablando por treinta minutos y Elena me hizo pensar y reflejar sobre temas de privilegio y recibir de brazos abiertos a lo inc\u00f3modo. Mucha de la experiencia de un@ becari@ consiste en manejar a las zonas rurales de Vermont. Las visitas con los participantes de Huertas incluyen la recolecci\u00f3n de datos sobre las verduras y hierbas que quieren sembrar en la primavera. Cuando le pregunt\u00e9 sobre su experiencia durante esas visitas, me qued\u00f3 claro que Elena hab\u00eda pensado mucho en las implicaciones m\u00e1s profundas de su presencia.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cReconozco mi privilegio, por ejemplo mi edad, el color de mi piel, mi educaci\u00f3n, etc. Cuando estoy manejando a casa de alguien que vive m\u00e1s escondido y bajo el radar. Siempre me reciben de brazos abiertos y me hacen sentir en casa pero igual tenemos que hablar de verduras y hierbas que vamos a plantar a la mitad del invierno. Esa situaci\u00f3n puede ser un poco…inc\u00f3moda. Pero es importante estar bien con eso y estar bien con cualquier obst\u00e1culo, como si no logras traducir algo o algo parecido a eso.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Un parte del proyecto de Huertas es entender tu propio privilegio. A veces se puede dar por hecho poder moverse tan f\u00e1cilmente por las zonas rurales de Vermont y poder llegar e irse de una visita sin ning\u00fan miedo. Aunque la conciencia de este privilegio te saca de tu zona de confort, es necesario para poder trabajar junto con los integrantes de la comunidad migrante. <\/span><\/p>\n

En la universidad, Elena estudi\u00f3 Sistemas de Alimentaci\u00f3n y Nutrici\u00f3n. Ella tiene una pasi\u00f3n por la comida, espec\u00edficamente de diferentes culturas. Usa esas pasiones en su trabajo actual como la coordinador de educaci\u00f3n de City Market. Desde el colegio hasta su trabajo, un gran enfoque suyo es crear oportunidades de educaci\u00f3n sobre la comida para la comunidad en Burlington y en Vermont en general. Una preocupaci\u00f3n de Elena es que que la mayor\u00eda de la gente se enfoca solamente en el movimiento de de comida \u2018org\u00e1nica\u2019 y\/\u00f3 \u2018local.\u2019 Pero mucha gente se olvida de las personas quienes son la fundaci\u00f3n de la industria- l@s granjer@s. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEstoy aprendiendo sobre la seguridad alimentaria, nutrici\u00f3n, ciencias de alimentos y todos los t\u00e9rminos populares, pero lo que yo quiero preguntar es: \u201cY por qu\u00e9 l@s trabajadores quienes producen nuestra comida no tienen acceso a esa misma comida?\u2019\u201d <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Esta pregunta es dif\u00edcil de contestar y m\u00e1s porque se requiere cierto conocimiento del tema para que el\/la consumidor(a) pueda postular la pregunta. En Vermont, donde la mayor\u00eda de la industria de l\u00e1cteos depende del trabajo de los migrantes Latinos, es necesario empezar a preguntar sobre las personas que producen los productos que tanto nos gustan. L@s trabajadores no son reconocidos y este hecho necesita cambiar. <\/span><\/p>\n

De nuestra conversaci\u00f3n, me qued\u00f3 claro que el impacto que Huertas tuvo en Elena ha sido dr\u00e1stico. Elena vive en Burlington y todav\u00eda est\u00e1 involucrada en el proyecto. Recientemente, ella organiz\u00f3 una clase de cocina en City Market con Ale, una participante querida de Huertas. Ale le ense\u00f1\u00f3 a la clase como cocinar empanadas de pollo y de papa. Elena tambi\u00e9n est\u00e1 trabajando con l@s becari@s actuales para organizar y presentar el documental, \u201cDolores\u201d<\/span>. <\/span><\/i>Este documental se trata de la vida y los logros de Dolores Huerta–una activista para los derechos de los trabajadores agr\u00edcolas en E.U.A. Elena est\u00e1 comprometida a las conversaciones sobre el acceso a los alimentos y la soberan\u00eda y continua no solamente a buscar respuestas, sino tambi\u00e9n a hacer las preguntas.<\/span><\/p>\n

El documental, \u201cDolores,\u201d se va a presentar el 19 de abril a las 5:30pm en el edificio de Waterman en UVM. Les dar\u00e9mos m\u00e1s detalles pronto!<\/span><\/p>\n

-Alex Rose\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After walking away from my afternoon with Elena, I felt a lightness you only feel after getting great advice. If you\u2019ve been keeping up with past blog posts, you know that this year we\u2019re taking a step back to catch up with Huertas alumni to see what they\u2019ve been up to since their time as […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4053,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-196","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/huertas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/196","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/huertas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/huertas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/huertas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4053"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/huertas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=196"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/huertas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/196\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":200,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/huertas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/196\/revisions\/200"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/huertas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=196"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/huertas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=196"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/huertas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=196"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}