Transforming the Food System: How to Use a Race Healing and Equity Lens for Meaningful Change

Center for Social InclusionWKKF Food Grantee Meeting

May 8, 2013

CSI’s Goal: Structural Inclusion

The Food System

Changing Demographics

Economic Health

Food Deserts: A National Problem

The Price of Food: 1985-2000

Food Prep and Service workers earn sub-living wages and tend to be people of color

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational Employment Data. North Carolina Survey.

Nationally, forty percent of all food preparation workers are people of color

9

Race and Jobs: Restaurant Business

ROC United, 2012 “Behind the Kitchen Door”

Front of the House Back of the House

1in 3 Blacks and nearly 1 in 2 Asians and Latinos work in the Back of the House compared to 1 in 5 Whites.

Average Income for Farm Laborers

Source: National Agricultural Worker Survey

• 72% of all Farmworkers are foreign born (68% of all farmworkers are from Mexico)

• 23% of all farmworkers live below the federal poverty line

Land Loss among Black Farmers

• Over 23 million acres (2.3% of all agricultural land) lost from 1982 – 2007 to commercialization, prospecting, and “development”.

Between 1982 - 2007

• Over that same period Black farmers lost 800,000 acres, about 25% of their land, compared to 2.3% for all others

Source: USDA

Who Misses Out on Subsidies?

Insurance is Missing Farmers of Color

Structural Racial Exclusion

Land

Transportation

Housing

Civic Participation

EmploymentEducation

Environment

Multi-institutional (not just institutional racism)

Policy driven Impact on attitudes Impact is racialized Intent to discriminate

not required Racial disparities are

symptoms

History Matters…A LOT

Policies Matter…A LOT

Social Security

Federal HousingAdministration GI Bill

Supermarkets & Suburbanization

1930: King Cullen: “Pile it high: Sell it Low”

• 30 million Americans lack access to healthy foods

• 1 in 4 Blacks in food deserts

Production

Processing

Distribution

Retail Market

A working food system: Farm to

Fork

The Structure of Food

HEALTHY: Detroit Black Food Security Network

FAIR: Coalition of Immokalee Workers

GREEN: Don Bustos AFFORDABLE: Common Market

Grantees are Leading the Way

Core Elements of Strategy

Strategy Questions ID problem Who benefits? Is harmed? How? ID 3+ institutions impacting the problem (good

or bad) ID 3 policies impacting the problem (good or

bad) Which impact the root causes? Facts? History?

Impact Questions Would grassroots communities and communities of

color be more able to shape food policy at local, regional and/or national levels?

Would communities of color have better economic opportunities (e.g. jobs, ability to become farmers, regional food hubs) because of the impact you are making?

What relevant challenges or problems would not change if your identified entry point is successful?

http://centerforsocialinclusion.org/http://www.facebook.com/centerforsocialinclusionhttp://www.twitter.com/theCSI