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Everyone must work together to resolve farmworkers campground issues

Everyone should work together to resolve campground issue

To the Editor:

“Man’s inhumanity to man makes many mourn.”

It is dehumanizing to blatantly ignore a difficult dysfunctional situation. It can be seen as being worse than, or indeed as bad as, murder, because in ignoring a bad situation we put down the spirit and lives of those who are struggling to earn their daily bread and honour their existence. An existence given to all of us at birth

None of us is perfect, nor do we know everything. Do you realize that we are all transients much of our lives? When we leave our permanent homes to shop in neighbouring towns or cities, or go further afield by car, bus, train, or plane, we become transients.

Wherever we are going, we expect to be respected the same as any other well behaved, law abiding citizen. We expect to experience “The Golden Rule.”

Generally, we do experience this interaction. Throughout history, our transient citizens on the move were explorers and cartographers, along

with trappers and mountain men. Then came the farmers with their horse drawn prairie schooners and sheep and cattle. Later, in the 1900’s, to the dirty thirties, it became necessary for many men to become transient, again in order to seek jobs. These folks were called bums, tramps, or hobos. Many did find jobs and settled down somewhere.

This brings us to our present day situation. Going back in our Okanagan history to earlier days, transient settlers from Europe came to farm the rich soil of the Okanagan. They, in turn bought farmland and settled down with other transient folks to enhance our society. In any society, everywhere, we do have “rotten apples” that have to be removed from the group by law enforcement. This ensures safety  to the public and the transient workers as well.

Our young people go to the prairies and eastern provinces for work or education, and are treated reasonably well. We should at least reciprocate with a clean, hospitable camp ground, with running water and properly services porta potties as well.

In the September 16 Review are two excellent letters from Doe Gregoire and Tom Isherwood. These letters replicate in detail, what is needed to correct this problem.

Please, residents of Keremeos and Area “G,” insist vehemently to Mayor Despot and council as well as Regional Director Elef Christiansen to find a more suitable place for our farm workers, who are just working their way through life, just as our own children must do.

Remember: cleanliness is next to Godliness. We certainly do not want an illness to break out because of filth caused by ignorance and gross stupidity,  in this society and this day and age.

Come on people, let us all work to solve this despicable situation now.

Flo Winfrey, Olalla