Meridian Behavioral Health is now a part of Blue Ridge Health! Learn More
Blue Ridge Health was founded with migrant farmworker outreach in mind, a tradition we proudly carry on today. We’ve since expanded our services to include community outreach and street outreach programs, offering health education, medical and dental care, behavioral health services, and more, to ALL who are in need of quality healthcare.
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In 1942, the Bracero Program allowed millions of Mexican workers to enter the United States legally for short-term work. Desperate for employment, these migrant workers were willing to take back-breaking jobs at lower wages than many American workers.
In 1960, CBS aired “Harvest of Shame,” a bleak documentary that highlighted the poor living conditions of migrant agricultural workers. Shot in run-down labor camps and out in the fields, this documentary was the first time many Americans saw what it was like to live in poverty in their own country.
Edward R. Murrow, one of the most famous reporters during this time, said of the documentary: “We present this report on Thanksgiving because, were it not for the labor of the people you are going to meet, you might not starve, but your table would not be laden with the luxuries that we have all come to regard as essentials.”
In 1962, John F. Kennedy signed the Migrant Health Act into effect, paving the way for Claire Hayden Burson – a public health nurse with a vision of eliminating health disparities for the migrant farmworkers – to found Blue Ridge Health.
Over 15,000 migrant farmworkers come to North Carolina each growing season. Blue Ridge Health continues to focus on reducing the unique barriers faced by migrant agricultural workers, and to expand our services to the entire community, including those who are living without shelter.
