Food. Justice. Work. 

The Checkout centers the voices and efforts of essential workers on the frontlines of our food system. Now more than ever, our food system is in a constant state of flux, radical change and crisis. From political economy and supply chain analysis to public policy, labor organizing and community struggles, The Checkout will expand the horizon of what is necessary to create a just, equitable and progressive food system.

The Checkout is a proud member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network.

Episode 19: Leah Penniman of Soul Fire Farm
Podcast Errol Schweizer Podcast Errol Schweizer

Episode 19: Leah Penniman of Soul Fire Farm

“We appreciate the legacy of George Washington Carver at Tuskegee University, who convinced an entire generation of farmers in the late 18th century to practice regenerative… cover crops, mulching, composting, diversifying their crops…

“ It’s a tragedy to rob Organic of it’s proud history to imagine that it is new, an innovation of the West. ”

From https://www.farmingwhileblack.org/team and https://www.soulfirefarm.org : Leah Penniman is a Black Kreyol educator, farmer/peyizan, author, and food justice activist from Soul Fire Farm in Grafton, NY. She co-founded Soul Fire Farm in 2011 with the mission to end racism in the food system and reclaim our ancestral connection to land. Leah holds an MA in Science Education and BA in Environmental Science and International Development from Clark University, and is a Manye (Queen Mother) in Vodun. Leah has been farming since 1996 and teaching since 2002. Soul Fire Farm is an Afro-Indigenous centered community farm committed to uprooting racism and seeding sovereignty in the food system. Their food sovereignty programs reach over 10,000 people each year, including farmer training for Black and Brown growers, reparations and land return initiatives for northeast farmers, food justice workshops for urban youth, home gardens for city-dwellers living under food apartheid, doorstep harvest delivery for food insecure households, and systems and policy education for public decision-makers.

Indispensable resources from Soul Fire Farm:

https://www.soulfirefarm.org/media/publications/

https://www.soulfirefarm.org/portfolio-items/food-sovereignty-action-steps/

https://www.soulfirefarm.org/portfolio-items/equity-guidelines/

https://www.soulfirefarm.org/media/farming-while-black/

Take Action:

Policy demands: https://www.soulfirefarm.org/get-involved/take-action/

Reparations: https://m4bl.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Reparations-Now-Toolkit-FINAL.pdf

Fairness for Farmworkers Act: https://www.harris.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Fairness%20for%20Farm%20Workers%20Act%20One%20Pager.pdf

Justice for Black Farmers Act: https://www.motherjones.com/food/2020/11/black-farmers-have-been-robbed-of-land-a-new-bill-would-give-them-a-quantum-leap-toward-justice/?fbclid=IwAR1unD-AUvcnYkDBkV2dHBVxUyyiaZS8NtpYTq1O490XAqucUMT3yznQVu4

More on George Washington Carver: https://www.discovermagazine.com/environment/george-washington-carvers-legacy-went-beyond-peanuts

Donate: https://www.soulfirefarm.org/support/

Follow The Checkout on Facebook - Instagram - Twitter.

Stream The Checkout on Apple Podcasts - Spotify - Stitcher - Google Podcast

“ It’s a tragedy to rob Organic of it’s proud history to imagine that it is new, an innovation of the West. ”

From https://www.farmingwhileblack.org/team and https://www.soulfirefarm.org : Leah Penniman is a Black Kreyol educator, farmer/peyizan, author, and food justice activist from Soul Fire Farm in Grafton, NY. She co-founded Soul Fire Farm in 2011 with the mission to end racism in the food system and reclaim our ancestral connection to land. Leah holds an MA in Science Education and BA in Environmental Science and International Development from Clark University, and is a Manye (Queen Mother) in Vodun. Leah has been farming since 1996 and teaching since 2002. Soul Fire Farm is an Afro-Indigenous centered community farm committed to uprooting racism and seeding sovereignty in the food system. Their food sovereignty programs reach over 10,000 people each year, including farmer training for Black and Brown growers, reparations and land return initiatives for northeast farmers, food justice workshops for urban youth, home gardens for city-dwellers living under food apartheid, doorstep harvest delivery for food insecure households, and systems and policy education for public decision-makers.

Indispensable resources from Soul Fire Farm:

https://www.soulfirefarm.org/media/publications/

https://www.soulfirefarm.org/portfolio-items/food-sovereignty-action-steps/

https://www.soulfirefarm.org/portfolio-items/equity-guidelines/

https://www.soulfirefarm.org/media/farming-while-black/

Take Action:

Policy demands: https://www.soulfirefarm.org/get-involved/take-action/

Reparations: https://m4bl.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Reparations-Now-Toolkit-FINAL.pdf

Fairness for Farmworkers Act: https://www.harris.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Fairness%20for%20Farm%20Workers%20Act%20One%20Pager.pdf

Justice for Black Farmers Act: https://www.motherjones.com/food/2020/11/black-farmers-have-been-robbed-of-land-a-new-bill-would-give-them-a-quantum-leap-toward-justice/?fbclid=IwAR1unD-AUvcnYkDBkV2dHBVxUyyiaZS8NtpYTq1O490XAqucUMT3yznQVu4

More on George Washington Carver: https://www.discovermagazine.com/environment/george-washington-carvers-legacy-went-beyond-peanuts

Donate: https://www.soulfirefarm.org/support/

Follow The Checkout on Facebook - Instagram - Twitter.

Stream The Checkout on Apple Podcasts - Spotify - Stitcher - Google Podcast

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Episode 6: Farming While Black in Austin, TX with Tiffany Washington
Podcast Errol Schweizer Podcast Errol Schweizer

Episode 6: Farming While Black in Austin, TX with Tiffany Washington

Tiffany Washington is an Austin-based combat veteran and Organic farmer, and runs Dobbin-Kauv Garden Farm. Tiffany served in the U.S. Navy and was trained as an Organic farmer by Farmshare Austin, an 18-week farmer education program, as well BattleGround to Breaking Ground, a one year Texas A&M program that helps veterans get into farming as a business. Tiffany is also an Organic Intellectual whose family has lived in the Austin area for over 150 years. Tiffany has done extensive research into the lives of Black farmers and Freedman colonies in Austin and Central Texas, including the insidious history of land theft and dispossession that gave rise to the current wave of gentrification and food apartheid in one of the country’s most segregated cities. Tiffany is an heir to the agricultural legacy of such luminaries as George Washington Carver, who trained thousands of Black farmers in regenerative farming methods, and Booker T. Whatley, the founder of community supported agriculture. We feel honored to have spent time with Tiffany to hear her story. To support Tiffany, check out her GoFundMe here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/veterans-urban-farm-needs-your-help.

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