Farming While Black with Leah Penniman

AJ Williams-Myers African Roots Center Presents “Farming While Black: African Diasporic Wisdom for Farming and Food Justice” with Leah Penniman

Leah Penniman shares her wisdom, wit, knowledge of history and love of farming. With a particular focus on uplifting the contributions of Black, Indigenous, Women of Color, Penniman will guide us to an understanding of how we can be part of the movement for food sovereignty and help build a food system based on justice, dignity and abundance for all members of our community.

Food will be served. Childcare will be provided.

This program is presented as part of our Real History Series.

Co-Sponsors: Humanities New York; Kingston YMCA Farm Project; Radio Kingston; Rise Up Kingston; Soul Fire Farm; the idea garden; The Kingston Land Trust; Women's History Month Kingston; YMCA of Kingston & Ulster County

Background: Some of our most cherished sustainable farming practices – from organic agriculture to the farm cooperative and the CSA – have roots in African wisdom. Yet, discrimination and violence against African-American farmers have led to our decline from 14 percent of all growers in 1920 to less than 2 percent today, with a corresponding loss of over 14 million acres of land. Further, Black communities suffer disproportionately from illnesses related to lack of access to fresh food and healthy natural ecosystems.

Soul Fire Farm, cofounded by author, activist and farmer Leah Penniman, is committed to ending racism and injustice in our food system. Through programs such as the Black-Indigenous Farmers Immersion, a sliding-scale farm share CSA and Youth Food Justice leadership training, Soul Fire Farm is part of a global network of farmers working to increase farmland stewardship by people of color, restore Afro-indigenous farming practices and end food apartheid.

And with the book “Farming While Black,” Soul Fire Farm extends that work by offering the first comprehensive manual for African-heritage people ready to reclaim our rightful place of dignified agency in the food system.

About Leah Penniman: A Black Kreyol educator, farmer/peyizan, author and food justice activist, Penniman co-founded Soul Fire Farm (Grafton NY) in 2010 with the mission to end racism in the food system and reclaim our ancestral connection to land. As co-Executive Director, Penniman is part of a team that facilitates powerful food sovereignty programs.

https://on.today.com/35mcPuD

http://www.soulfirefarm.org/

This program is funded in part by Humanities New York with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/farming-while-black-with-leah-penniman-tickets-91235807757?internal_ref=signup