Historical Perspectives on Food System Transformation

The United States food and agriculture movement has a deep history of grassroots organizing. Especially in Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities, grassroots organizing has offered a form of resistance to a food system that does not prioritize human life and dignity. Under a capitalist system, private land ownership and the desire to maximize profits has led to food being seen as an item to be bought and sold instead of as a vital necessity. As a result, those with access to capital and land, especially large corporations, enforce conditions on farms that are exploitative to the environment and the people working the land.

Food is an essential part of our lives, and access to nourishing, culturally relevant, and equitably produced foods is necessary to ensure communities can flourish. While access to food is essential for people to thrive, over 33 million people in the United States lived in households lacking secure access to food in 2021. There are federal programs aimed at supporting impoverished communities to increase food security. However, these initiatives often do not do enough to tackle the injustices within the food system that underlie the existence of hunger.

It is essential that food system advocates understand the history of the food and agriculture movement to ensure that we continue to learn from the organizers that have spearheaded the work before us. This blog post highlights three case studies: the struggle for farmworker justice and the United Farm Workers; the necessity of community-based methods of self-sufficiency and the Freedom Farm Cooperative; and the origins of the Farm Bill and the farmer response to the Dust Bowl.