{"id":267,"date":"2010-06-18T02:35:31","date_gmt":"2010-06-18T02:35:31","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2010-06-18T02:35:31","modified_gmt":"2010-06-18T02:35:31","slug":"agropocalypse-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/centernet.pcusa.org\/food-faith\/agropocalypse-now\/","title":{"rendered":"Agropocalypse Now!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last night our group had a presentation that looked at a
\ndifferent aspect of conventional agriculture: unethical labor practices.
\n We
\nheard a presentation by Emily Drakage from the Association of Farmworker
\nOpportunities Programs (AFOP<\/a>) about the 400,000 recorded
\nchildren working in
\nconventional agriculture across the country. She showed us slides of
\nchildren
\nas young as six years old, mainly Latino\/a, working with their parents
\nin the
\nfields. They are exposed to heat, poor sanitation, toxic pesticides,
\ndangerous
\nequipment, and long days which keep them out of school. Their career
\ndestination reaches no farther than to put cheap food on our tables<\/o:p>.\n<\/p>\n

It was a heartbreaking presentation that, for some
\nof us,
\nclarified our motivation for advocating nationwide agricultural reform.
\nUp
\nuntil this point, our team had approached agriculture from a mainly
\nenvironmental standpoint, matching the problems of human impact on the
\nearth
\nwith solutions in lifestyle changes and local agriculture. Over the
\ncourse of
\nmeeting non-profit organization staff members, local farmers,
\nrepresentatives
\nof education institutions and church communities, we have encountered
\nvaried
\nattitudes to these problems, ranging from apocalyptically urgent to
\npeacefully
\nbucolic. But now looking at social issues as well has
\nwidened our
\nview to see that not only the earth is suffering. Our sickened
\nagricultural
\nsystems gravely affect both humus and humans. <\/p>\n

There is a survivalist worldview that motivates
\nmany local
\nagrarians to establish expertise, stockpile of food, cut off from \u201cthe
\ngrid,\u201d
\nand otherwise prepare for an impending ecological collapse. Although
\nthis
\ncollapse will be global, people who subscribe to this mindset focus on
\nwhat is
\nmanageable: their households\u2019 and neighborhoods\u2019 resiliency. The
\nfoundation of
\nthis worldview is fear for their own and loved ones\u2019 well-being in the
\nevent of
\nan inevitable future catastrophe.<\/p>\n

As people of faith, we identify with the emphasis
\non local
\nagriculture and innovation. We also recognize the urgency that shifts
\nour focus
\nfrom \u201chobby\u201d gardens in the backyards of our homes, to community
\ngardening
\nprojects on the front lawns of our churches. However, as people of
\nfaith, we
\nwonder whether the hellfire of ecopocalypse is the best way to motivate
\nour
\nfledging agrarian (r)evolution. We do not need to invoke a future
\nsituation of
\ndesperation to the point of starvation because that day arrived a long
\ntime ago
\nfor our brothers and sisters in the fields who are sacrificed to our
\nnational idolatry
\nof cheap food.
<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The cost of focusing on a future day is that we
\nblind
\nourselves to the suffering happening today. Too often we motivate change
\n based
\non threats to our person and not on the suffering on those we may have
\nthe privilege
\nof ignoring. An ecopocalyptic person may avoid buying supermarket
\nblueberries
\nbecause they would rather work on their blueberry cultivation skills
\nwhich will
\nsave them in the Day of Reckoning. A socially engaged person, however,
\nmay
\nchoose freely to vote with their dollars by spending the extra money on
\nlocal,
\ntrusted farmers\u2019 blueberries \u2013 not out of fear, but out of love for the
\nyoung
\nchildren who, with their parents, are trapped by the systemic wage
\nslavery that
\nmakes conventional berries so cheap.<\/p>\n

With this love, we can drive out fear, build up the
\ncommunity, shorten supply chains, and construct a just and inclusive
\nfuture. We
\nfeel called, in our agrarian (r)evolution, to integrate our vested
\ninterest in
\na sustainable future with our love and solidarity for those who can
\nbarely
\nsustain themselves today.<\/p>\n

~by Talitha G Phillips and Laura Valencia ~<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last night our group had a presentation that looked at a different aspect of conventional agriculture: unethical labor practices. 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