AfroCarolina Correspondence #417

Reflections from the Of Hearth & Table Symposium

At the end of March I attended the Of Hearth & Table Symposium at Wake Forest University. Two of my organization’s founders, Gabrielle Eitienne and Gerald Harris, were presenting so a gang of us from Tall Grass- a Black produce food program, decided to make the trip to Winston Salem, NC in support. As I drove through the gates of Wake Forest University (running late per usual) I wondered what this white school, nestled amongst the greenery of Winston Salem, had to offer around Black foodways.

Well, the symposium, coordinated by Center for Research, Engagement, and Collaboration in African American Life (RECAAL), turned out to be a a full spread of Black wisdom and BIG community love. There were several panel discussions on topics ranging from food access to culinary entrepreneurship. Below I’ll share some nuggets from two conversations that resonated with me.

Black Farming, Food Access and the Legacy of Fannie Lou Hamer Panel

“Everything went down on the farm” - Gerald Harris

At one point during this discussion, Gerald shared his experience as a child frequenting his grandfather’s farm in Arkansas. According to Gerald, “everything went down on the farm”. Births, deaths, weddings, and summer cookouts were experienced and observed by all in that space.

Kamal Bell, owner of Sankofa Farms, also spoke about how he fosters community at his farm through events, school trips, and community work days. The experiences shared by Gerald & Kamal made me think about the need for more Black community hubs in the wake of continued racial violence & rising inflation. Black farms & homesteads have the potential to reclaim their role in holding space for our bodies and souls. Unlike cozy coffee shops or even church, you can show up to the farm in your raggedy jeans, without any change in your pocket, and leave feeling grounded with an armful of fresh produce. I left this panel wondering what might be possible if we saw the value of Black farms beyond their ability to grow food.

Black Chefs & Restaurateurs Making a Difference in the Community Panel

On the mechanics of sankofa…

Vivian Joiner and Stephanie Tyson are the owners of Sweet Potatoes, a soul food restaurant in downtown Winston Salem. The two women are both business and life partners, and are elders in the local community.

During this panel they spoke to the hardships they faced in the early days of funding and opening their restaurant. They also spoke to the respect they had for their role models growing up in the segregated south, and how they organized neighborhood programs and mutual aid to make sure everyone’s needs were met.

As they were talking, I thought about my own multitude of project ideas and community programs I’d dreamt up in my head but never felt resourced enough to execute. My capricornean nature yearned to go beyond the comfort of nostalgia and get to the nuts and bolts of how our elders were able to do so much and build the things they needed with such limited resources. How were meetings held back then? What did community outreach look like? Who created the budgets (if there were any)?

As I deepen my role in within the local food system in the triangle, I hope to create more spaces for continued intergenerational dialogue centering the mechanics of sankofa- allowing us to build new systems informed by the ingenuity of our ancestors and elders.

I’m grateful for the wealth of wisdom & experience that I got to observe during the Of Hearth & Table Symposium. You can learn more about the Center for RECAAL here.