The brothers are both factory workers. Robert works at Granite City Steel, and Norman at the Olin ammunition plant. Their grandfather bought the land they farm more than 100 years ago, and they took over the farm from their parents in 1972. In a press release to explain their strike, they state, "Both brothers have another source of employment, but wanted to preserve the family farm. With prices declining steadily and cost of production escalating steadily, it may become a costly hobby, instead of a second income."

They invited Militant reporters to their farm. Robert pulled out a 1946 paper he had found in the farmhouse and quoted the prices listed: Wheat at $1.71 a bushel, corn at $1.37 a bushel. He then quoted current prices: wheat at $1.99 a bushel, corn at $1.62 a bushel. Over the same period, the costs of production have increased tremendously. Norman commented, "You need at least 300 acres and a job on the side to make a living, to help support the farm."

Referring to government farm assistance programs, the Engelkes state in their press release, "Yes, the government offers CRP, LDP, and oil seed payment programs as a tax-subsidized option to farmers to help make the difference. But even with this assistance, the small farmer cannot even break even!"

Robert explained what they hope to accomplish. "We're hoping maybe people next year might think about it and say, 'Maybe we might let some ground lay.' There are people out there like us who can afford to do it, have a job and some land, but aren't making any money. A lot of people are farming 400, 500, or 600 acres trying to survive. They can't afford to leave any lay. Maybe some of the bigger farmers will let 25 acres lay."

The Engelke brothers are looking for a way to get prices for farm commodities up to a level that will allow family farmers to earn a living. They plan to write letters to state and federal officials asking them to do something. To publicize their strike, they organized a press conference that drew a local newspaper and a TV station.

Several nearby farmers stopped to express their support for the Engelkes' action. Alan Libbra, a neighbor who farms 2,000 acres, said, "The value in this is to call attention to the problem. People in the agricultural community clearly understand the problem, but I don't know how well the general public does. Keeping people conscious is the value, but this is not on large enough a scale to have an impact on the market."

Libbra, who was active in the farm protest movement in the 1980s, added, "There's going to be a lot of social upheaval around this over time. Little towns are just blown away, becoming retirement villages. The explosion in the acreage size on grain farms in the last few years boggles the mind. One of my neighbors farms 4,000 acres, another 5,000, and there are a couple to the north who farm 3,000 to 5,000. Anybody farming less than that has got an off-farm job. It takes a lot of units to spread the cost across a $200,000 combine. In the central part of the state, there are several operations of between 8,000 and 40,000 acres. This has happened just in the last eight to 10 years."

Libbra concluded, "The only thing that can ever reverse this is a reversal in government policy, and that can only happen if people see how it affects them."

Bill Arth is a member of the United Auto Workers. Kitty Loepker, a member of the United Steelworkers of America who works at Granite City Steel; and Ellie García, a garment worker, contributed to this article.  
 
 
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