(PNS reporting from FRESNO) Latino farmworkers say Dodge’s American Farmer Super Bowl commercial is a bunch of manure, according to Claude Rhodappel, spokesman for the Minority Organization for Farmworkers and Obreros (MOFO).
The commercial, directed by filmmaker Ken Burns, used crisp documentary-style photography to celebrate America’s farmers while espousing the values of Dodge’s Ram Truck.
MOFO is objecting to the fact that almost all of the farmers depicted in the ad were white, with the exception of one African-American man, who was included as the “Magical Negro” featured in so many Hollywood productions.
Burns received similar criticism over his documentary series The War which chronicled World War II and did not include stories of Latino veterans who fought in that conflict.
“The omission is a big one, because of the large number of Mexican and African-American farmworkers in fields across the country who put food on our table,” Rhodappel told reporters this morning here this morning.
“And there would be a lot more Japanese farmers if their land hadn’t been confiscated during the internments. Additionally, The farmer described by Paul Harvey as being created by God on the “eighth day” is clearly Mexican.”
A spokesman for Dodge says the company chose to use inspirational audio from dead radio broadcaster Paul Harvey for the commercial, instead of Burns’ original narration, which started, “They had names like Brad and Biff and Chip and Bosley…”