Working with a group through YouthWorks has been a little bit eyebrow raising so far this year. It's not my first time working with kids through them, but for some reason this year the youth still do not have their bus passes and its basically the end of the first week. Not only that, there are strict rules and conditions surrounding the summer job that if they miss more than 2 days consecutively then they are kicked out. This creates a dilemma. It is unfair because a couple of the kids have had obstacles getting to the program - and have had to get help from others in the group (which is fine but really not cool because the cost of the bus passes are going to be taken out of their paychecks anyway). Last year this wasn't the case, all passes were paid ahead of time but things have fell behind a bit this time around.
Just some of the surface level observations on the reality of working hands on with youth within an institutional structure, and doing this work to begin with that is designed intrinsically to shift paradigms - beyond what we've been "given". Its all steps, and another layer to the onion I suppose.....I give thanks for the opportunity and the activation that I'm already witnessing..
Designing and Building A Native Meadow.......
We completed the weeding of a section of the farm that will become a native meadow and serve to support a healthy ecosystem for pollinators, beneficial organisms, and for the people as a beautiful sight for the neighborhood to enjoy. There is a very special energy at the farm, an oasis amidst the urban noise. The kids were so serious about making sure that everything was neat and the alley was very clean after they finished weeding (even picking up additional trash that was left in the alley). We layed down tarp over the weeded areas to promote "solarization" which is just a fancy way of saying we were killing the weeds by putting plastic over them so that it would intensify the suns rays onto them and kill them rapidly in a matter of days. We then planted some annuals and perennials (echinacea, nicotinia, Black Eyed Susans, etc) in one part of our bed that was ready for transplants.
Conversations in the Garden: Talks about the Uprising of last year...
We got into a conversation about where we all were around the time that the Freddie Gray incident happened in Baltimore, and the sorts of things that they were thinking about at the time. I was mostly listener. What I heard was that the overall feeling was anxiety and a feeling of being cornered in by the authorities. Without going into too much detail here, I heard some stories of resilience and courage in the face of being abused and attempts at being contained in an environment that was NOT safe to stay at the time (references to the MTA shutdowns and being stranded at school or by Mondawmin)
Throughout the day there were various rises and peaks and depths being explored, all in an overall light hearted spirit and energetically met with reminders at times to tread softly into the ground zero of the fertile minds and experiences of these amazing youth.
Creating Safe Space & Confronting the Painful Structures of our Realities....
In my next post I will delve more in depth about our food justice lesson plans, and address some of the social politics in navigating the Urban Ag "scene" as a person of color. Negotiating culture as well as the intersections with gentrification in urban life.
Peace & Power thank you for reading, I look forward to sharing more of my journey with you all.
Nicola
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