mgmt discussion

Step 1: Engage With This Week's Resources

Before writing your post, please complete the following:

• ???? Read Chapter 5 with your PowerPoint slides Download PowerPoint slides open for note-taking — pay close attention to the diversity of experiences within the Latino/Hispanic community and the historical context of U.S.–Mexico labor relations
• ???? Watch: "Harvest of Loneliness: The Bracero Program" (57 minutes)

Accessing the Film

This documentary is housed on our college library website and requires your student login credentials to access. Please plan ahead — don't wait until the night before your post is due to discover a login issue.

???? Watch the film hereLinks to an external site.

???? A full transcript of the film is also available here if you find it helpful for note-taking or accessibility purposes — see the link on Canvas.

If you experience any difficulty accessing the film through the library portal, contact ARC Library Services or campus technical support right away — don't wait until the deadline.

About the Film

"Harvest of Loneliness" documents the origins, selection process, and human impact of the Bracero Program — the guest worker initiative that contracted Mexican citizens to meet U.S. agricultural labor needs from 1942 to 1964, bringing an estimated 5 million men to work primarily in California's Central Valley. Through the voices of braceros themselves, the film puts a human face on a policy whose consequences are still felt in U.S.–Mexico relations today.

As you watch, take notes on specific moments, testimonies, and arguments you want to bring into your post. The strongest posts will reference particular scenes or statements from the film rather than speaking in generalities.

Step 2: Write Your Initial Post

Your initial post has three required parts. Please make sure all three are present before submitting.

Part 1 – Discussion Prompt Response (250–350 words)

Using Chapter 5 and the film as your primary sources, respond to the following three questions. You do not need to give equal weight to each — let the evidence and your analysis guide where you spend the most time — but all three should be addressed in your response:

1. Who benefited from the Bracero Program — and how? The program involved multiple stakeholders with very different relationships to it. Identify the primary beneficiaries and explain specifically what each gained. Consider: were the benefits equally distributed? Who bore the costs?
2. Why has the Bracero Program been described as one of the worst violations of human rights since slavery and the genocide of American Indians? This is a serious and deliberately provocative claim. Use evidence from the film and the chapter to explain what conditions, practices, and power dynamics led scholars and advocates to characterize it this way. What specific abuses does the film document?
3. Looking forward: Should the U.S. use guest worker programs to address undocumented migration today? This is the policy question the film leaves us with. Drawing on what you've learned about the Bracero Program's history and outcomes, make an evidence-based argument for your position. There is no single right answer here — but your position must be supported with reasoning and evidence, not just opinion.

Support your analysis with specific examples and citations from the chapter and the film. Use APA format for all embedded citations and include a complete References section at the end of your post.

Part 2 – Your Own Quote (quote + APA citation)

Find a quote from the Chapter 5 reading that resonates with you — something unrelated to the discussion prompt above. Include:

1. The quote — copied accurately, in quotation marks
2. APA citation — author, year, and page number

Part 3 – Your Response to the Quote (100–150 words)

Why did this quote stand out to you? What does it make you think about? What question does it raise for you or for the class?

Choose a quote that will open up a new thread of conversation — something that invites your classmates to think, respond, and engage.

End your post with a complete APA References section for all sources cited, including the textbook and the film.

Not sure how to cite a documentary film in APA? Here's a quick guide: Director Last Name, First Initial. (Director). (Year). Title of film [Film]. Production Company. Example: Telles, R. (Director). (2004). Harvest of loneliness: The Bracero Program [Film]. Film Arts Foundation.

Step 3: Return and Respond to Your Peers Due: Sunday at midnight

After the Thursday posting deadline, return to the discussion board and respond to at least two classmates. This week's policy question — whether the U.S. should use guest worker programs today — is likely to generate a range of perspectives. Seek out posts that approach the question differently than you did, and engage with the reasoning behind their position rather than simply agreeing or disagreeing.

Strong peer responses:

• Reference something specific your classmate said
• Ask a genuine follow-up question
• Offer evidence that supports, complicates, or challenges their argument
• Connect their point to your own experience or to something from the film or chapter they may not have mentioned

Plan to visit the discussion board on three separate days:

• Thursday — post your initial response
• Friday or Saturday — read and respond to at least two classmates
• Sunday — follow up on any questions directed to you and continue the dialogue