Growing your own food, a 'Homegrown Revolution'

[JohnyCanuck]

Run time: 10:00 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCPEBM5ol0Q   Posted on YouTube: November 09, 2007 By YouTube Member: dervaes Views on YouTube: 383207   Posted on DU: August 14, 2010 By DU Member: JohnyCanuck Views on DU: 486

 
Path to Freedom presents 'A Homegrown Revolution' A collaboration of selective media clips which feature their urban homestead and farm which focus on the need of radical action -- growing food in the city.

This self produced, short music video was shown at Peter Seller's Cultural Art's class at UCLA followed by a short presentation by urban farmer, Jules Dervaes founder of Path to Freedom. The class focus was on the art of slow food and among other guests invited were Michael Pollan, Alice Waters and Eric Schlosser.

Like Victory Gardens of yesteryear, start your own homegrown revolution, grow your own food in your back or front yard -- for more information visit the urban homesteaders at http://www.PathtoFreedom.com

Or on their online journal at: http://www.urbanhomestead.org/journal

[mother earth]

1. Thank you, JohnyCanuck. My heart is earth crunchy :)

and when you combine that with freedom....ooooooo it's so good. :)

This is truly the past meeting our future...why did we ever leave? Kudos to you for bringing this here. K & R

[readmoreoften]

2. Yes, I raise food. And it sucks to have to do it when you work 12 hours a day.

Tending to the chickens, losing money on vegetables in a heatwave. I personally wish to god we had SAFE AFFORDABLE FOOD by farmers who were well-respected and well-paid and that I didn't have to do this work myself. There is nothing "radical" about this. Now the working class is responsible for growing their own food in addition to working for pennies? It's not radical, it's pretty tragic. Less tragic than eating food filled with plastic, pesticides, and high fructose corn syrup, but tragic nonetheless.

Everyone is so enamored when I tell them I have chickens (garden was a long-dead waste of money). It seems so "sustainble!" But do any of them raise them themselves? No. Because they see it as a daunting task, and they are right.

What would really be radical would be if people starting fighting back and demanding better food. The only reason why I do this is because I live with an ex-farmer. Ex-farmer, because he can't get a job working on the land that's not backbreaking work for minimum wage.

[mother earth]

3. While this is true, historically speaking, farming has always been

a "family" endeavour...it takes a village, nothing worthwhile comes easily, but I am grateful we are beginning the "just say no" to big agri. that screwed the true farmers out of their livelihoods. What's tragic is the stranglehold of Monsanto on our very lives because of GM foods and cornering the market on seeds, ousting those who tilled the soil and actually grew food that sustained and nourished.

Hell yes to fighting back, but herein lies the beauty, they cannot oust everyone in this trend. The fact that we see the trend as a necessity speaks to dissatisfaction and that will only grow, so it is fighting back. Everything you do for yourself is fighting by example TPTB that have messed with food, livelihoods and health/life itself.

Enamor away, readmoreoften. Everytime you lead by example, you win. :)

[fasttense]

4. It's a lot of hot, hard, back breaking work.

My husband was laid off in 2008 and we decided to farm our 14 acres. Let me tell you, I'm retired military, and I have never worked so hard as I do now. It's not just that it is physically demanding and the heat is agonizing on your plants, your animals and your body, but it never ends. You can't take a day off, it never all gets done. It is a constant.

But... there are a few moments in a day when you would never trade it for anything in all the world.

When you hear the sweet peep of the first baby chick in the spring.

When your eggplants all come in looking almost perfect despite the bugs ravaging the leaves for months.

When you step away from the weeding and look up at the burst of colors from the rows of zinnias against the rows of blooming sunflowers.

When you have that first dripping tomato sandwich of the summer.

When you have a meal and know everything you are eating. You know it personally, you saw it from a seed and brought it up the best way you could. You cared for it as it grew and you wished it farewell as it finished it's last few days in the fall. You know the food intimately and personally. And then you decide if you will plant its offspring.

[harun]

6. I have just a small garden in my backyard in the city

and it bust's my rear. I cannot imagine the effort in large scale farming.

Like you said though, there are those moments that make it more than worth it.

[Joanne98]

5. AWESOME!