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Salons at Stowe

 

Race and Food Access

March 10, 2016

Youth Leaders, four Hartford High School students from Grow Hartford led a conversation on the intersections between food and race. They described how race helps determine access to healthy food and that lack of access to food is a form of violence. We think of food in terms of “choice” and that failure to eat healthily is due to a failure to chose healthy options, rather than a lack of access to healthy options. Though education on healthful foods is important, the Youth Leaders emphasized that systemic forces make healthy food expensive and inaccessible for individuals in urban areas, predominately people of color.

The Youth Leaders spoke on their “10 slices of justice” campaign, a student-led initiative for healthy school lunches. Some of the “slices of justice” are including larger portions in school meals suitable for growing high school students, and including locally grown and culturally appropriate foods that reflect the school’s diversity.
 
 
Inspiration to Action

  • Support the “10 slices of justice campaign”
  • Listen to the voices of young people in the fight for food justice
  • Volunteer with programs that support locally grown food
  • Educate others on healthy food, but understand that there are many factors that affect how and what people eat
  • Understand and acknowledge the history of food in the U.S. and how our food system has never been accessible to all
Location Harriet Beecher Stowe Center
Doors Open 5:30 - 7:15 PM
Program 5:30 - 7:15 PM