Racial Justice in Agriculture
June 16, 2020
Earlier this week, in response to the unequivocal call for racial equity we’re seeing across our country, MALT shared a number of commitments for the future. We recognize that in order to meet this historic moment, acting on the values that we hold as an organization, we must immediately accelerate — and deepen — our commitment to fostering the thriving community that we speak of and promote in all of our work. Among the commitments we shared was a promise to listen to, learn from and regularly champion the stories and perspectives of those in our field who are leading the fight for racial equity in agriculture. Here are a few organizations we want to highlight, as we get started:
- The Black Family Land Trust, located in North Carolina, provides educational, technical and financial services to ensure, protect and preserve land ownership for African Americans and other historically underserved landowners.
- Farms to Grow, Inc. out of Oakland works to assist Black and other underserved farmers and gardeners to create and maintain sustainable farms and spaces to grow food and motivate the next generation of farmers.
- Conscious Kitchen of Marin City addresses food equity, education and access by shifting the paradigm around school food service while cultivating a local, ecological food system.
- Urban Tilth, located in Richmond, California, trains local residents to cultivate agriculture in west Contra Costa County to help the community build a more sustainable, healthy and just local food system.
We invite you to share your perspectives and your ideas as we begin the work to build a more inclusive, more just MALT.