French Farmers Protest Mercosur, Media Forgets History of Neoliberalism
The farmers’ anger, framed as a simple reaction to a trade deal, is a culmination of decades of EU policies prioritizing corporate farming and global trade over local producers. The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), for instance, has long favored large-scale industrial operations, pushing smaller, family-run farms to the brink. This isn't just about Mercosur; it’s about a system designed to
consolidate power and profit at the expense of agricultural self-sufficiency. One might wonder if the media's selective amnesia regarding economic policies that systematically undercut local economies is a feature, not a bug. After all, connecting these dots might reveal how 'free trade' often translates to freedom for multinational corporations to exploit cheaper labor and less regulated markets,
leaving the struggling farmers to literally roll their grievances into the streets.