Washington state is known for its cherries. We produce more sweet cherries than any other state in the country, and we export them all over the world.

But to supply the world with cherries, Washington farmers need a lot of workers to show up for a very short harvesting window. Usually they do, but not this year. High profile ICE raids are keeping migrant workers from the fields.

Today, how a culture of fear is pushing Washington cherry growers to the brink.

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Booming is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is Carol Smith. Our producers are Lucy Soucek and Alec Cowan. Our hosts are Joshua McNichols and Monica Nickelsburg.