Celebrate Community Gardens… but who’s not present at the table?

Rally for Farm Workers' Rights, Stop Methyl Iodide, and Take Back California

2011-08-25T06:10:26Z

We are approaching a time in our democratic history where new leaders must arise out of the ashes of our recession, for left behind is a void to be filled with unknown leaders who still lurk in the shadows of this country, waiting for someone to bring them out, or to be brought out when the moment is ripe.

Republicans have an advantage because they are militant about their form of economic prowess. A militancy that only accounts for a fiduciary responsibility, a bottom line, to the elite in society that are so incubated from the struggle of the common man that their comfort and opulence comes at the price of the middle class and the poor.

As a Democrat, I do not share the same bottom line with my fellow republicans. They are motivated and rewarded by protecting the upper echelons of society, who claim to drive our economy forward and keep the masses dependent upon them for their very survival.

The time has come for Democrats to stand untied under a “bottom line” that defines the fate of our future and our nation. The luxury to faction into environmental and human rights groups must come to an end. We must unite under one banner, or it will kill us and destroy any movement we seek to empower.

The time has come for Democrats alike to unite under one agenda and one banner – to build power for those who will in turn create new leaders and champions that will overturn the tide of economic exploitation that has caused our precious corporate backbone to break into a thousand pieces and export them to foreign nations far and wide.

It is too often that republican counter parts give Democrats a slice of whatever small piece of the pie to satisfy a few of those who have become so disillusioned in our system of democracy that they become like bottom suckers obedient to their fiduciary responsibility in order to ensure a fleeting and seemingly meaningless re-election.

Democratic militancy will arise when the bottom line imposes such a rigorous form of oppression and exploitation that the middle class becomes entwined in a struggle for their survival and the threat of poverty looms overhead like a prophetic dark cloud thundering with the threat to strike upon the very backbone of our country.

Friends, the middle class is suffering and our way of life is no longer sustainable. For the first time in history of this country, our children will be worse off than us.

The middle class is fragmented and weakened by the staggering economy and yet our precious unions are being attacked by the very same force that strikes at the heart of our democracy and threatens a fascist regime of immoral capitalism that is no longer consistent with the democratic values set forth by our founding fathers.

The Democratic Party is plagued with factions, differences of opinions, and dare I say wolves dressed in sheep’s clothing. And for those who play to your own ambitions need a reminder from a man who sacrificed his life to teach us that this day would come, where we must put aside our differences and unite once again if we are to take back our country - “We cannot seek achievement for ourselves and forget about progress and prosperity for our community… Our ambitions must be broad enough to include the aspirations and needs of others, for their sakes and for our own.”

There are many issues we must work on.

First, we must create jobs in our own communities and reform our educational system, ensure our environment is being protected while simultaneously relying upon sustainable and environmental practices that are proven to create jobs and begin the arduous process of reversing the deleterious effects our institutions have imposed upon our planet.

These changes will not come easily. These changes will require us all to sacrifice a lifestyle we have been used to in order that we can guarantee our children will not have to digress into a world where unemployment remains high and our educational system renders robots capable of regurgitating a history that promotes more ignorance about the realities facing our world today.

The Democratic Party needs more power and more troops in order to turn back the tide of ill economic policy that has favored a miniscule minority of industrialists who dictate exploitive policies and have dominated our educational institutions, our media, and our legislative institutions. Now is the time, my friends, to launch a united front against the same powerful interests that have abandoned Americans for an oversea paradise that will only prove to be a plague of more exploitation and generated hate for America.

The Democratic bottom line must be defined just as the Republicans have defined theirs, and Democrats must build power under a united front with leaders that have the power to unify the unions, and the Party, into a force that will make our republican counterparts tremble as they see their bottom line fall while our standards of living begin to rise once again. I tell you friends, their bottom line and GDP does not define how we live our lives.

We are the people and we have the power to innovate, dream, and create the future that our founding fathers envisioned for our country. As Cesar Chavez once wrote, “Money is not going to organize the disadvantaged, the powerless, or the poor. We need other weapons. That’s why the War on Poverty is such a miserable failure. You put out a big pot of money and all you do is fight over it. Then you run out money and you run out troops.”

Now is the time for our Democratic leaders, lurking in the dark, waiting for this moment to arise, to come out from the shadows and take control over our agenda to take back our country and force the republicans to listen to the masses who will not tolerate conditions that deny basic human rights and fare wages for all workers, especially the farm workers.

For the last 5 years, the UFW has been tirelessly working to stop the use of methyl iodide, a cancer causing pesticide that scientists call, "one of the most toxic chemicals on earth." In March of 2010, the UFW even took legal action joining with other environmental groups.
Just this past year, the Democratic Party united under one banner and passed a resolution urging Governor Jerry Brown to reverse the registration of this highly toxic pesticide. Still, he does not listen to our voice.

Two months ago, Governor Brown vetoed the Fair Treatment for Farm Workers Act, a bill that would have made it easier for farm workers to join a union and speak up for their rights. More than 1,000 farm workers visited the Capitol during the 12 days Governor Brown deliberated on the bill.

Now is the time for Democratic action to strike fiercely and look into the eyes of corrupt government gone awry. The foundation upon our party is our ability to organize into a unified force and build power through sheer determination and with the conviction that we have the Truth on our side.

We ask you, fellow Democrats, to join us in organizing a unified front by building power within our respective unions to get behind the UFW and help them win this battle for fair treatment for farm workers. This is a symbolic as well as a very real movement that cuts to the heart of a greater movement that will begin the shift toward greater power and force to begin taking back our country from those who only see America as a corporate subsidiary for harnessing the blood and toil of the masses for their pure self- interest and economic gain.

Enough is enough!

Join us in a united front to build the power we need and facilitate the development of leaders and elected officials that will sacrifice their own ambitions to include the greater good of our people into that equation.

On Sunday, August 29th there will be a rally at the capitol to celebrate the end of a 165 mile march that will mirror the 2002 10 day march where 5,000 people gathered to urge then Governor Gray Davis to sign the United Farm Workers-sponsored bill granting field laborers mediation and arbitration to win union contracts when growers drag out negotiations.

We urge you and your respective Democratic clubs to come and support the UFW and unite under one banner as we once did during the 70’s after Cesar Chavez founded the UFW. Let us learn from history and take back what is rightfully ours. Identify key leaders within your own clubs who are willing to step forward and become champions for a cause that will lead them to greater glory and power to turn the tides of history in our favor.

Si se puede!

Disclosure: Asael Sala is a community organizer with statewide environmental justice/human rights coalitions, a community advisory board member for a local health system, and Chair of Campaign Services for a local partisan civic engagement club.

Big Agribusiness is holding our Democracy Hostage

2011-08-22T07:07:12Z

The California registered chemical Methyl iodide is one of the most carcinogenic substances on earth and causes late term miscarriages. The progress we, as environmental justice advocates, should have been enough to permanently stop the use of methyl iodide and urged our government to stop its use.

Over 300,000 petition signatures were sent to the US EPA urging them to reopen the scientific review of methyl iodide. A large public outcry from the environmental justice and human rights communities, including well known Nobel Prize laureates, has protested methyl iodide’s continued use. In addition, very large coalition of environmental justice and human rights advocacy groups had protested in the central valley and central coast; a resolution was even unanimously passed by the California Democratic party urging Brown to reverse the registration of methyl iodide.

The California Teachers Association (CTA) and the California Federation of Teachers (CFT) have put forth resolutions urging the California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) to divest from the venture fund that invests in Arysta Life Science. Furthermore, the coalition has been involved in intense negotiations with Brown urging him to either reverse the registration or appoint a new Department of Pesticide Regulation Chief Deputy Director. Lastly, we have sued the state to put a stop of any further use of the chemical in this state.
However, our campaign to stop methyl iodide exposes our broken system and reveals why reform is so innocuous. This campaign is not so much about methyl iodide as it is about people and our broken system.

Our founding fathers established principles to guide our constitution and our political process of democracy. Inherent in these principles are the abilities for normal folks to organize themselves and to hold our democratic process accountable for when the balance of power has become uneven.

The state’s corporate safety net is no longer looking out for the best interest of our people as the state continues to downsize and more layoffs are imminent. These big agribusiness companies are lobbying hard to maintain the status quo that is proven to be unsustainable for our future. Industry is fully aware that the transition to sustainable farming practices and more urbanized agricultural production will place our communities back into the hands of the people.

This week I visited a Mien strawberry farmer in South Sacramento. Lo Pham grows the most delicious strawberries I have ever tasted without the use of methyl iodide. He uses a combination of solarization, composing, and cover crop to supplement the use of the fumigant. Lo, who owns a strawberry farm free from the reliance of methyl iodide, yields strawberries that are immaculate, sweet, and delicious. “I don’t need methyl iodide”, said Lo, “[w]e don’t use that anymore because now we have a natural method of putting tarps over the crops for solarization and the heat from the compost kills all the pathogens.”

There are alternatives to methyl iodide.

The campaign to stop methyl iodide has been diplomatic so far with Brown’s administration. We have sought after selected legislators who have championed this issue. They too, have their hands tied due to the political realities confronting them and concerned with their own political survival. The law suit will help, but we cannot put all our eggs in one basket.

As Cesar Chavez once wrote, "The consumer boycott is the only open door in the dark corridor of nothingness down which farm workers have had to walk for many years. It is a gate of hope through which they expect to find the sunlight of a better life for themselves and their families." We hope Brown steps into the sunlight.

Sustainable agriculture is the answer for turning our state around in a direction that will create more jobs and begin the arduous process of cleaning up our environment. Our state is on a suicidal course of action right now that will lead the common folks into a state of devastating food crisis and it will be too late unless the common man leaves his post to stand united with the rest of his fellow man. In this case, the people have spoken and our leaders have given us one choice – to protest. We are not willing to abandon the people and this Tuesday we will stand untied together to protest and urge the Governor to take immediate action.

The message is clear: The registration of methyl Iodide is deadly and harmful to the environment and we will not stand by and let big power agribusinesses rob us of our right to clean air, water, and healthy food.

Disclosure: Asael M. Sala is a community organizer for the California Food Project, Pesticide Watch & Pesticide Watch Education Fund, a Community Advisory Board Member for the UC Health System, and the Chair of Campaign Services for a local civic/political club

Celebrate Community Gardens… but who’s not present at the table?

2011-08-06T13:52:56Z

The City Council recently passed an ordinance that would allow privately owned, residentially-zoned vacant lots to be turned into “community gardens.” As a community organizer for the California Food Project in the Sacramento region, I spend most of my time facilitating the development of community leaders, groups, and coaltiions, which has also afforded me the opportunity to experience the local politics and policies that can pose barriers to communities becoming more self-sufficient and sustainable.

The community garden ordinance, while a success for many people and organizations, seemed to have left out many others. The idea of the community garden ordinance originated from residents who saw an opportunity to create more community, grow produce to supplement food budgets, or simply just to have more garden space to beautify city landscapes. The original conceptualization was to allow owners of residentially zoned lots to use their land for the purposes of creating garden space for residents to garden. One particular City Council Member had even appropriately pointed out, during the hearing, that there is a difference between owners who wish to let the community use the land for free (undeveloped) and those who enter into private contractual agreements with residents for the purposes of renting out space on developed land. This distinction, however, is not made clear in the ordinance. This has now created one more way for the city to enforce code violations for any resident owner of a vacant lot who simply wishes to let the community use their land for free without meeting the new special permitting requirements. This unfortunate turn of events has led to a widening disparity in the already existent divide between the service providing industry, government, and the people (Reminder: the former two are intended to serve the latter).

A major reason why the garden ordinance passed in its current form was mainly due to a void of a stong community perspective. It isn’t anyone’s fault, but I’m inclined to believe we are all responsible just as we can easily point to a broken system. People don’t believe they can make a difference. And why should they when laws are passed that blow smoke in the community’s face? The garden ordinance is a great idea and should be welcomed and celebrated. Yet, our celebration is short lived if we have no residents behind us, cheering us on, moving us in a direction that is consistent with their vision for the community. Without a strong resident presence in our effort, our movement to save California would wilt.

The good news is the California Food Project has been developed to strengthen the capacity of residents, youth and community organizations in Sacramento to advocate for greater access to locally grown, healthy food. In these challenging economic times, especially for local governments, we have worked with residents to articulate the value of local, healthy food and agriculture, as well as the costs of unhealthy food. Many groups have already formed and, while struggling to find that critical sense of empowerment, are steadfastly moving forward despite minor setbacks. Every day I talk to residents who are discovering the California Food Project for the first time, and many are becoming excited at the prospect of starting their own group or organization.

Still, I can’t help but feel that we, as service providers, missed an opportunity to build trust with our resident communities to really push the city council to address the equity issues inherent in the final version of the garden ordinance. In its current form, an owner of a vacant lot would still have to cough up around six to seven thousand dollars to develop the land for a community garden (maybe less depending on whether an adjacent property owner meets some of the special permitting requirements). It’s certainly not a stretch of the imagination that this ordinance poses an immediate inequity. For instance, poor communities tend to be more underdeveloped and therefore have more empty lots than more affluent communities that tend not to have as many vacant lots. In other words, not much has really changed with the passage of this community garden ordinance, although I do not doubt this will lead to a few scattered vacant parcels to be converted into community gardens.

The passage of the community garden ordinance is something to celebrate, as it is a small step toward a much larger goal; however, in order for there to be true change in how policies are adopted and implemented there needs to be a strong resident driven advocacy body that mobilizes people and holds ALL of us accountable. This is how we, as service providers, will succeed in actually serving our communnity while still meeting our deliverables. The community garden ordinance was intended to create community and facilitate the transition toward more self-sustaining communities. For now, we work with what we have and move forward in advocating for what we need and want.

Now is the time communities need to begin the transition toward sustainable living and all of us need to begin the transition of depending less on government and more upon our communities to provide us with the opportunities that will carry us into the future. But, we must create COMMUNITY first and foremost.

Disclosure: Asael M. Sala is a Community Organizer with Pesticide Watch and Pesticide Watch Education Fund, the California Food Project, and is a Community Advisory Board (CAB) Member to the UC Health System.