This video is based on Victoria Knight’s story, “Without Federal Protections, Farm Workers Risk Coronavirus Infection to Harvest Crops.”

KHN has never been busier ― and health coverage has never been more vital. We’ve revamped our Behind The Byline YouTube series and brought it to Instagram TV.

Journalists and producers from across KHN’s newsrooms take you behind the scenes in these bite-size videos to show the ways they are following the story, connecting with sources and sorting through facts.

Victoria Knight — How Do You Say …?

When KHN correspondent Victoria Knight began reporting on the coronavirus risk migrant workers brave to harvest crops, she struggled to find farmworkers willing to speak on record. Many of the workers who are undocumented worry about possible detention by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or fear the Trump administration’s “public charge rule.” The rule allows immigration officers to deny someone admission to the country based on the entry seeker’s lack of economic resources.

Still, she persisted until ― through the Virginia Farm Workers Program at the Central Virginia Legal Aid Society ― she found Saul, 52, a temporary farmworker who has traveled from Mexico to Virginia every year since 1996 to harvest tobacco. Saul’s native language is Spanish, Knight’s is English, but with the help of WhatsApp messenger and translation support from her roommate, she was able to get this story made.