![]() This goal acknowledges the often painful history of land ownership and loss for communities of color in the United States, particularly Black and Indigenous communities. Now the organization is ready to set down more permanent roots through its Liberation by Land campaign, a fundraiser with the goal of purchasing a 10- to 30-acre plot of land within 20 miles of Denver, which will be used by FrontLine Farming, but also open to collective use by local BIPOC community members. In the four years since it began, Frontline Farming has been able to do so on five acres of leased land in three locations in and around Denver: Majestic View Farm in Arvada, Sister Gardens in North Denver, and Celebration Garden in South Denver. Alongside the desire to provide food for people who need it and better the working conditions for farmworkers, Auguste and the organization’s other co-founders, Fatuma Emmad and Damien Thompson, had a straightforward goal: “We wanted to be able to grow food and do it under our own autonomy,” Auguste says.įatuma Emmad, one of the co-founders of FrontLine Farming. It is one of the reasons why the organization was founded in the first place. Signed by Governor Polis last year, the bill secures labor rights for farm workers, such as the right to the state minimum wage and overtime pay, protections from overwork, injury, heat stress, and more.īut it is the call for food sovereignty that thrums like a heartbeat beneath FrontLine Farming’s work. To address those bigger needs, the organization’s food justice work includes public mobilization, advocacy, and testimony in support of policy that corrects historical injustices in the food system, such as Colorado’s SB21-087, the Agricultural Workers’ Rights bill. ![]() “We know serving that immediate need isn’t going to fix all the problems within the food system,” he says. Food security, or ensuring all people have access to nutritious, culturally appropriate food, has been a highly visible need throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, but addressing this important priority through efforts like donating produce and rescuing food is only the beginning, says JaSon Auguste, one of FrontLine Farming’s three co-founders and director of marketing, media, and technology. At the center of its strategy is the acknowledgement of our food system’s troubled treatment of people of color, both past and present, but also an understanding that building a relationship with plants, soil, and farming can be a source of healing for the generational trauma experienced by Black and Indigenous community members.įrontLine Farming’s approach has three focus areas: food security, food justice, and food sovereignty. Sharing knowledge and skills through this apprenticeship program is one way FrontLine Farming-a nonprofit farm led by women and people of color-is implementing its strategy for building a more equitable Front Range food system. Galindo, who has a degree in human nutrition from MSU Denver, had seen chokecherries used in Indigenous ceremonies, so the fruit’s nutritional and spiritual importance interested her. The Wednesday presentations are a chance for team members-apprentices, farmers, and staff-to take turns diving deeply into topics that interest them and share what they learn with the rest of the team. Galindo, who identifies as Indigenous, is a member of this year’s FrontLine Farming’s BIPOC Apprenticeship Program, a six-month, hands-on course for Black, Indigenous, and students of color to learn about farming, sustainable growing practices, food systems, and food sovereignty. The presenter, Gabriela Galindo, passes around a branch of dark purple berries and describes how Indigenous communities processed the tannic fruits into nutritious, long-lasting foods like pemmican, a mix of dried berries, meat, and fat. Staff members, farmers, and apprentices sit quietly in the shade, listening to a presentation on chokecherries, a native Colorado fruit that grows wild nearby. It’s a sunny Wednesday afternoon at FrontLine Farming’s Majestic View Farm in Arvada, and the weekly team lunch is winding down. The Local newsletter is your free, daily guide to life in Colorado. Top of the Town Readers’ Choice Awards: Vote Now!.The 5280 Brunch Event: Get Your Tix Today!.The 25 Best Neighborhoods in Denver in 2023.
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