The influences of Africans and Black Americans on food and agriculture is rooted in ancestral African knowledge and traditions of shared labor, worker co-ops and botanical polycultures.
In this episode, we hear from Karen Washington and Bryant Terry on how Black Food culture is weaving the threads of a rich African agricultural heritage with the liberation of economics from an extractive corporate food oligarchy. The results can be health, conviviality, community wealth, and the power of self-determination.
Featuring
Karen Washington, co-owner/farmer of Rise & Root Farm, has been a legendary activist in the community gardening movement since 1985. Renowned for turning empty Bronx lots into verdant spaces, Karen is: a former President of the NYC Community Garden Coalition; a board member of: the NY Botanical Gardens, Why Hunger, and NYC Farm School; a co-founder of Black Urban Growers (BUGS); and a pioneering force in establishing urban farmers’ markets.
Bryant Terry is the Chef-in-Residence of MOAD, the Museum of the African Diaspora in San Francisco, and an award-winning author of a number of books that reimagine soul food and African cuisine within a vegan context. His latest book is Black Food: Stories, Art and Recipes from Across the African Diaspora.
Credits
Executive Producer: Kenny Ausubel
Written by: Kenny Ausubel and Arty Mangan
Senior Producer and Station Relations: Stephanie Welch
Program Engineer and Music Supervisor: Emily Harris
Producer: Teo Grossman
Host and Consulting Producer: Neil Harvey
Production Assistance: Monica Lopez
Additional music: Ketsa
Resources
The Farmer and the Chef: A Conversation Between Two Black Food Justice Activists
Karen Washington – 911 Our Food System Is Not Working
Working Against Racism in the Food System
Black Food: An Interview with Chef Bryant Terry
The Food Web Newsletter
This is an episode of the Bioneers: Revolution from the Heart of Nature series. Visit the radio and podcast homepage to learn more.
Black Food: Liberation, Food Justice and Stewardship | Karen Washington & Bryant Terry | Bioneers: Revolution From the Heart of Nature podcast - Listen or read transcript on Metacast
