In 1985, with U.S. family farmers facing mounting issues, a trio of trailblazing musicians decided to do something about it. Willie Nelson, Neil Young, and John Mellencamp organized the Farm Aid benefit concert, recruiting musicians like Tom Petty, Loretta Lynn, and Billy Joel to join them. Raising more than $9 million for family farmers in its inaugural event, Farm Aid has endured over the past four decades as a way to draw attention to the unique struggles this community continues to grapple with.
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This year, Farm Aid 40, is a special one, with the event’s organizers along with artists like Margo Price, Dave Matthews and Billy Strings taking the stage Sept. 20 at the University of Minnesota’s Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. Unfortunately, an ongoing union strike at several University of Minnesota campuses could derail the historic concert altogether.
Farm Aid Statement Urges University to Reconsider Contract Negotiations
In a Thursday (Sept. 11) statement posted to the official Farm Aid Facebook account, festival representatives announced that this year’s event is in danger of cancellation.
“We want nothing more than to hold this event as planned,” the statement read. “We have worked in partnership with the staff at Huntington Bank Stadium to create a spectacular event. However, Farm Aid has always stood with workers in their struggles for fairness, dignity, and respect. Today, the University’s Teamsters employees are on strike because of the University’s inability to come back to the table to resolve this contract dispute justly. We are deeply concerned that this jeopardizes our ability to hold Farm Aid 40 as planned but primarily puts these workers in a place of hardship as they labor to provide basic needs for their families.”
Why Are University of Minnesota Employees Going On Strike?
The Minnesota Star Tribune reports that the Teamsters Local 320—which represents more than 1,400 custodial, maintenance, food service, and sanitation workers at the University of Minnesota—went on strike Monday evening. The strike follows months of negotiations between the union and the university. Earlier this month, the Teamsters rejected the school’s offer of a 3 percent wage increase. Union members were angling for a 3.5 percent increase, which they say is more in line with other university unions’ contracts.
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As of now, FarmAid artists, production team members, and partners are refusing to cross the picket line, according to the statement.
“These decisions reflect our own values: the farm and labor movements are inseparable, and we believe strongly that the University must return to the bargaining table in good faith,” they wrote.
In their statement, FarmAid organizers warned of “devastating” financial implications if the festival is forced to relocate or cancel altogether.
“We are currently looking at all of our options for hosting this event, but it is not an easy task to pivot at this point,” the post read.
It continued, “The expenses already incurred to bring this historic event to Minnesota may well threaten the survival of our organization after four decades of service to family farmers.”
Featured image by Gary Miller/Getty Images
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