Farmworker Justice, Faith, and Governance: A Critical Realist Analysis of one FBO’s Participatory Initiative

Abstract

Faith-based organizations (FBOs) are often integral to supporting immigrant populations in the United States. However, there is little research critically examining the way power functions in these entities. This study begins to address this gap by applying Fraser’s (2009) tripartite theory of redistribution, recognition, and representation and a Critical Realist ontological and epistemological framework to examine the power differences between an FBO and the farmworkers it serves. We analyze five months of ethnographic data to demonstrate how the effects of causal mechanisms associated with recognition (social status, nationalism, and racism), redistribution (class, neoliberalism, precarity, and dependency), and representation (immigration status and a concentration on “empowerment”) reinforce power imbalances. These results support our argument that organizations that work with farmworker populations must address power both at the interpersonal and structural levels to effectively address these imbalances. We conclude with recommendations for organizational professionals and critical scholars who engage questions of power and participation within nonprofit, faith-based, and food systems organizations.