“They Talk Like That, But We Keep Working”: Sexual Harassment and Sexual Assault Experiences Among Mexican Indigenous Farmworker Women in Oregon

Abstract

In order to examine the experiences of sexual harassment and sexual assault among indigenous and non-indigenous Mexican immigrant farmworkers in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, a community–academic participatory research partnership initiated a study, which included focus groups, conducted and analyzed by skilled practitioners and researchers. The themes that emerged from the focus groups included direct and indirect effects of sexual harassment and sexual assault on women and risk factors associated with the farmworker workplace environment, and the increased vulnerability of non-Spanish-speaking indigenous women due to low social status, poverty, cultural and linguistic issues, and isolation. Recommendations for prevention and improved services for vulnerable women will be discussed as well as limitations and future research directions.