By: Fernando Arce, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Tilbury Times Reporter
Known for its greenhouses and tomatoes, Leamington is also home to thousands of migrant agricultural workers every year. On Sunday, Sept. 15, over 1500 community members and more than 20 local organizations gathered in Seacliff Park to meet and thank some of those workers during the 15th annual Festival of Guest Nations.
“The Festival celebrates the diversity of migrant workers in the community, the sacrifices they make in coming to Essex County, and their contributions to the community and the local economy,” said the organizers, the Migrant Worker Community Program (MWCP).
“With over 15 years of success, this Festival has been an opportunity to facilitate engagement and community building between workers and the communities at large.”
The celebration included local cuisine, music, special guests and raffle prizes like bikes, backpacks and yeti bottles; other organizations donated gifts including a smart watch, gift baskets and more.
Festival organizers also coordinated with the Windsor Essex Local Immigration Partnership (WE LIP) and the Windsor-Essex Regional Community Safety and Well-Being Plan (WERCSWB) to include Public Information Day as part of the celebrations — “an opportunity for newcomers, migrant workers, and the broader community to connect with service providers and public servants who work to keep Essex County safe and healthy.”
“The Festival of Guest Nations, combined with the Public Safety Information Day, highlights the importance of building connections, fostering trust, and ensuring that everyone who calls Essex County home, even temporarily, feels safe, supported, and valued,” said Leamington and Warden of Essex County mayor Hilda MacDonald.
According to the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit, approximately 8,000 to 10,000 seasonal workers are employed during peak growing season at any one of the 176 farms in the region. The MWCP estimates that about 20,000 migrant workers come to live and work in Essex County each year.
Many of those workers come from the Caribbean and Mexico, contributing millions of dollars to local economies and serving as “the backbone of the agricultural sector,” says Martin Varela, chairman of the MWCP.
Chatham-Kent-Leamington MPP Trevor Jones agreed, calling migrant workers’ “contributions, sacrifices, and commitment to [the] region … invaluable.” MP Dave Epp expanded on that, saying the festival “is not just about cultural exchange but also about recognizing and appreciating the hard work and dedication that temporary foreign workers contribute to our nation.”
“Public Safety and Information Day is equally important, as it focuses on ensuring that every member of our community, including temporary foreign workers, has access to crucial information and resources that promote safety and well-being,” said Epp.
In attendance was also the Consul of Mexico in Leamington, Rodrigo Baez, who said the annual festival is “eagerly awaited each year by the working population in and around Leamington.”
“For the Consulate of Mexico, it represents a great opportunity to reach out to the Mexican community, being an ideal occasion to present a cultural program and to commemorate the ‘Anniversary of our Independence’ or ‘Grito Ceremony’ as it is commonly known,” he said referring to Mexico’s Independence Day celebrations which take place on Sept. 16.
