The Necropolitics of Expendability: Migrant Farm Workers During COVID-19

Abstract: COVID-19 has made visible and deepened inequalities globally, while also manifesting the vital role of functional food, health, and care systems in a context of strong socio-ecological interdependencies. We here mobilize bio– and necro–politics to problematize the declaration of agricultural workers as ‘essential’ and the accompanying policies during the early months of the pandemic, focusing on the region of Lleida, Spain. We show how this proclaimed indispensability was aiming mostly at securing cheap labor to agri-business while workers continued to be treated as expendable. An intersectionality lens allows us to understand discrimination and racism as health determinants, operating within and defining ‘glocal’ food necropolitics and COVID-19 biopolitics.Citation: Panagiota Kotsila & Lucía Argüelles (2024) The necropolitics of expendability: migrant farm workers during COVID-19, The Journal of Peasant Studies, 51:2, 441-465, DOI: 10.1080/03066150.2023.2243440 This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit necropolitics.substack.com