Ma tells Tom,“We’re the people—we go on.... A different time’s comin’” (p. 280). Is Ma right? For the migrant workers of America, did a different time ever come? Is the Joad experience still a part of the American landscape? How can we tell?

A different time did come with the advent of unions and organized labour. I think since the 1980's there has been a shift back to the free enterprise at any cost ideology. Migrant workers from places like Mexico still feel many of the challenges that the Joads felt. In tough economic times things get worse for marginalized and migrant workers. They are often used as scapegoats for the frustrations of the populous.