Adela Naranjo Bernabe holds a sewn banner that reads ‘No Pesticides’ alongside two hosts and three other winners of the annual Queen of the Patch pin up contest at the Watsonville Strawberry Festival on Aug. 1. (Nik Altenberg — Santa Cruz Local)
WATSONVILLE >> At the annual Watsonville Strawberry Festival on Saturday, one contestant of a pin-up contest used her time on stage to speak out on the issue of pesticide use and the health harms it can expose farmworkers to.
Adela Naranjo Bernabe is a teacher at Cabrillo College and longtime Watsonville resident. When it was her turn to take the stage for “Queen of the Patch” under the name Chicana de Corazón, she blew kisses, did a twirl and untied a large sewn banner that was wrapped around her dress. As the big yellow letters spelling “No Pesticides” became clear, the crowd erupted in applause and shouts of support.
To one side of the stage, activists gathered holding banners, flags and signs that read things like “1-mile buffer zones!!!” and “Protect schoolchildren from pesticides.” Pesticide activists in Watsonville have for years pushed for a larger buffer zone around schools, claiming that the current quarter-mile regulation is not sufficient to protect children from pesticide drift.
“We don’t want to spread pesticides in our schools no more,” said Chloe, a middle schooler, when asked about her sign.
As Bernabe was onstage answering her question for the contest — “If you were a strawberry dessert, what would you be and why?” — she said, “I think it’s important to have a dessert that is sweet but also that recognizes the hard labor of our campesinos.”
She also said that she would be a strawberry shortcake.
“My parents are farmworkers, my dad has worked in the strawberries all his life,” Bernabe said in an interview with Santa Cruz Local, adding that she thinks the community could be doing more to support farmworkers and prioritize the issue of pesticide exposure. “If we didn’t have farmworkers we wouldn’t have any strawberries.”
After the 10 contestants had their moment on stage, the three judges deliberated. A third place, second place and first place Queen of the Patch were crowned. Then, Bernabe as Chicana de Corazón was declared an honorary Queen of the Patch and was crowned alongside the other winners.
Adela Naranjo Bernabe, under the stage name Chicana de Corazón, was crowned Queen of the Patch. (Nik Altenberg — Santa Cruz Local)
Araceli Gonzalez, one of the hosts of the event, wore a hand-painted dress that paid homage to farmworkers and included anti-pesticide messages. (Nik Altenberg — Santa Cruz Local)
Pesticide activists held banners and signs protesting the use of pesticides near schools. (Nik Altenberg — Santa Cruz Local)
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Nik Altenberg is a bilingual reporter and assistant editor at Santa Cruz Local. Nik Altenberg es reportera bilingüe y editora asistente para Santa Cruz Local.
