Freedom Farms

In both the works of Monica White and Gail Myers, resistance through regaining control of food is key. White writes that Fannie Lou Hamer worked to “creat[e] an oasis of self-reliance and self-determination in a landscape of oppression maintained in part by deprivation” through the Freedom Farms in Mississippi (33). Although the Freedom Farmer’s Market in Oakland is not necessary aiming for self-reliance, Myers writes that “[b]lack people who come say it is like walking through an oasis of safety” (151). In both cases, resistance comes in the form of providing a community for a group of disadvantaged people to assemble. With this assembly of cultural exchanging comes revived spirit and control— all of which provide the platform for political, social, and economic change. White refers to this system as a “‘sphere of influence,’” which I believe both places act as through …show more content…
Kloppenburg explains that the term “provides a bridge from thinking to doing, from theory to action” and implies a “commensal communit[y]” (34, 37). Similarly, the Freedom Farmers’ Market and the Freedom Farms established physical programs and/or spaces to build a community in order to take action against the racist governmental policies and social standards. In addition, Kloppenburg focuses on “increas[ing] the level of local and intra-regional food production, processing, and distribution,” which parallels the Freedom Farms’ emphasis on creating a self-sustaining local program and the Freedom Farmers’ Market’s encouragement of local produce cultivated by local Black farmers (38). This form of resistance works to fight global food enterprises, while providing economic support for local farmers and people. On the other hand, Kloppenburg discusses using “foodsheds” as a way to counteract environmental issues by “‘think[ing] like a mountain,” whereas the other two do not seem to focus on this topic