Black Farmers Sow the Seeds for the Future
A century after the height of Black farming, young land stewards pick up the plow.
By Randi Love
In These Times
January 25, 2022
Excerpt:
“You can get your hands dirty a bit by coming out there or just seeing where your food is grown,” says Ray Williams, the managing director of Black Farmers Collective, a group of eight people who run two leased farms in western Washington. Yes Farm is the group’s urban location, not far from Seattle’s bustling Pike Place Market neighborhood. Small Axe Farm is about a 30-minute drive away.
Yes Farm is also home to a community garden ?“where folks who live in housing around here, or the neighborhood around here can get a bed or half a bed and grow their own food for their families,” says Hannah Wilson, farm manager.
The nonprofit, established in 2016, aims to educate the community and enrich the lives of Black people in and around the Seattle area through community gardens, events and participation. It operates with the assistance of volunteers who help plant, move soil and pack beds, but the heavy lifting is done by Williams, who identifies as biracial (Black and white), and his two full-time farm managers. The organic farms sell their goods through small community markets, and their crops include berries, cabbages, kale, beets and collard greens.
“I wanted to do something to help the Black community,” Williams says. ?“We hope that we can start to sell enough vegetables to become a model for a small farm operation. I don’t see us selling enough to pay for more than the growing of the food. We will always need grants and donations to offer our education, community events, and offer free food at pantries and special events.”
