THIS IS A NON-SMOKING EVENT

Enjoy a summer evening of food, music, film and activities at BUILD Chicago’s beautiful urban farm in Austin! It’s FREE and FOR ALL AGES!

Doors open at 6 p.m. for music, smores by the firepit, tours of BUILD’s urban farm (raised garden beds, greenhouses and chicken coop), tabling activities by community organizations and chef demonstrations of healthy eating recipes and refreshing beverages to quench your thirst.

Bring a blanket or folding chair. A little after 8 p.m., we’ll watch “Farming While Black.” Before the film, hear a panel of West Side farmers and expert gardeners talk about the film and answer your questions about growing food in the city. . . whether it’s a container on your porch, a full-fledged garden in your yard or plot in a community garden.

Invite friends of all ages!

As part of Austin Eats' efforts to bring healthy food resources and lively discussion around local food access to the Austin community, this event is intended for those who live, work, play, or worship in Austin.

We need 30+ volunteers! See how you can help and sign up here:

FARMING WHILE BLACK (2019) by Mark Decena (75 min)

"Farming While Black” is a feature-length documentary film which examines the historical plight of Black farmers in the United States and the rising generation reclaiming their rightful ownership to land and reconnecting with their ancestral roots.

As the co-founder of Soul Fire Farm in upstate New York, Leah Penniman finds strength in the deep historical knowledge of African agrarianism—agricultural practices that can heal people and the planet. Influenced and inspired by Karen Washington, a pioneer in urban community gardens in New York City, and fellow farmer and organizer Blain Snipstal, Leah galvanizes around farming as the basis of revolutionary justice.

In 1910, Black farmers owned 14 percent of all American farmland. Over the intervening decades, that number fell below two percent, the result of racism, discrimination, and dispossession. The film chronicles Penniman and two other Black farmers’ efforts to reclaim their agricultural heritage. Collectively, their work has a major impact, as each is a leader in sustainable agriculture and food justice movements.

Here is the line up for our evening together:

6 pm: Doors open. Tell us your favorite veggie or fruit and register for raffle prizes.

6 to 7:30 pm: Food & Fellowship

• Music

• Tours of the BUILD farm given by youth in the Austin Grown program: meet the chickens, see the raised beds, fruit orchard, greenhouses and more!

• Dinner bites: delicious, simple and healthy recipes

• Hydration Station

• S’mores station at the firepit

• Community partners will be offering lots of freebies and fun

7:30 to 9:30 pm: Discussion & Film

• Settle in on your blanket or folding chair for a screening of “Farming While Black”

• Before the film, hear a panel of West Side farmers and expert gardeners talk about the film and answer your questions about growing food in the city

• We’ll hold our raffle drawings

Masks are not required but are welcome. Proof of vaccination is not required.

BUILD Chicago can be accessed by the Cicero Stop of the Blue Line and the 7, 54, 57 and 126 busses. Parking is available in the neighborhood.

SPANISH TRANSLATION

Austin Eats is a collaborative working to rewrite the narrative around food in Chicago's Austin community. By synergizing organizations already promoting healthier food choices through grocery access, culinary entrepreneurship, food education, community gardens, and urban farms, Austin Eats will recreate Austin’s food access ecosystem. One Earth Collective is a member of Austin Eats.