Beyond the Kale
GEOGRAPHIES OF JUSTICE AND SOCIAL TRANSFORMATION
SERIES EDITORS
Nik Heynen, University of Georgia
Mathew Coleman, Ohio State University
Sapana Doshi, University of Arizona
ADVISORY BOARD
Deborah Cowen, University of Toronto
Zeynep Gambetti, Boazii University
Geoff Mann, Simon Fraser University
James McCarthy, Clark University
Beverly Mullings, Queens University
Harvey Neo, National University of Singapore
Geraldine Pratt, University of British Columbia
Ananya Roy, University of California, Berkeley
Michael Watts, University of California, Berkeley
Ruth Wilson Gilmore, CUNY Graduate Center
Jamie Winders, Syracuse University
Melissa W. Wright, Pennsylvania State University
Brenda S. A. Yeoh, National University of Singapore
Beyond the Kale
URBAN AGRICULTURE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE ACTIVISM IN NEW YORK CITY
KRISTIN REYNOLDS
AND NEVIN COHEN
2016 by the University of Georgia Press
Athens, Georgia 30602
www.ugapress.org
All rights reserved
Set in 10/12.5 Minion Pro Regular by Kaelin Chappell Broaddus
Printed and bound by Thomson-Shore, Inc.
The paper in this book meets the guidelines for permanence and
durability of the Committee on Production Guidelines for
Book Longevity of the Council on Library Resources.
Most University of Georgia Press titles are
available from popular e-book vendors.
Printed in the United States of America
20 19 18 17 16 P 5 4 3 2 1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Reynolds, Kristin, author. | Cohen, Nevin, author.
Title: Beyond the kale : urban agriculture and social justice activism in New York City / Kristin Reynolds and Nevin Cohen.
Other titles: Urban agriculture and social justice activism in New York City | Geographies of justice and social transformation ; 28.
Description: Athens, Georgia : University of Georgia Press, [2016] | Series: Geographies of justice and social transformation ; 28
Identifiers: LCCN 2015043957| ISBN 9780820349497 (hardcover : alk. paper) | ISBN 9780820349503 (pbk. : alk. paper) | ISBN 9780820349480 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Urban agricultureSocial aspectsNew York (StateNew York.
Classification: LCC S 451. N 7 R 48 2016 | DDC 338.109747/1dc23
LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2015043957
CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Writing can be a solitary activity, even when the work is about social movements and community activism. Yet we did not feel alone while writing this book. We were fortunate to have been part of a diverse network of individualsfarmers and gardeners, political activists, leaders of nonprofit organizations, city agency staff members, program officers of foundationswho make up New York Citys urban agriculture system and who have contributed in significant ways to Beyond the Kale.
We would like to acknowledge first and foremost the contributions of the urban agriculture activists featured in this book. Their work to advance social justice remains an inspiration, and the knowledge and opinions they shared with us brought to life the arguments we have made. We extend our heartfelt appreciation for the time and insights they have shared with us over the last few years. We have, with their permission and an opportunity to review for accuracy, used their actual names and quotations in the chapters that follow to highlight, in their own voices, their important efforts. Nevertheless, the analysis is our own, and some of the ideas we have expressed may differ from those of the individuals we interviewed. We also take full responsibility for any errors or omissions in the text.
Our colleagues Navina Khanna, Maya Joseph, and Monica White read early drafts of the manuscript, offering constructive criticism and valuable suggestions. Their feedback enabled us to clarify and focus the text and ensure that we were conveying ideas about race, gender, and class accurately and respectfully. We are truly grateful for their time and assistance. Karen Berman copyedited every single word of the manuscript, making it a much clearer and more accurate and readable document. We are grateful for her editorial talents and attention to detail. We are also thankful for the helpful comments of three anonymous reviewers, as well as Mick Gusinde-Duffy, Nik Heynen, and other members of the University of Georgia Press editorial board and staff.
We were fortunate to have had the support of several talented student research assistants who worked on nitty-gritty aspects of this project. Steven McCutcheon Rubio and Pauline Zaldonis transcribed interviews, searched for journal articles, compiled data, proofread drafts, and performed many other critical research tasks. Brett Silvers and Siu Him (Jimmy) Tang helped design the Beyond the Kale website. In particular, Katherine Nehring was an indispensable assistant over several years. In addition to transcribing interviews and helping with other research tasks, she coordinated activists feedback on quoted material and helped organize public eventssometimes with very short turnaround time as we worked toward important milestones.
We also acknowledge and thank our dear colleagues Peleg Kremer and Rob Stephenson for their contributions to the book. Peleg created the map of projects discussed in the book, and Rob photographed the featured farms, gardens, and activists. Their work adds important visual elements to the narrative.
Our research, the Beyond the Kale website, and related activities were supported in part by small grants from the Merck Family Fund, the Lucius and Eva Eastman Fund, and The New School. We also received much support from the Environmental Studies Program at The New School, where we were faculty members while researching and writing this book. Alan McGowan, who chaired the program during our research, and Brandon Fischer, Environmental Studies program manager, were especially supportive.
Finally, we thank our families and the many friends who offered encouragement throughout the writing process. Their shared enthusiasm for this work made the research and writing much more rewarding.
Beyond the Kale the book is a beginning, not an endwhat we hope is a small contribution to a long-term project to dismantle oppression and advance social justice. We look forward to continuing to work together with the urban agriculture activists described here, additional activists engaged in similar work, and those inspired by the efforts detailed in the following pages.
Kristin Reynolds
Nevin Cohen
PREFACE
The seeds of this book were planted in 2010, when we were part of an interdisciplinary research team that spent two years studying the urban agriculture system in New York City. Our work was part of a project called Five Borough Farm, overseen by the nonprofit Design Trust for Public Space, which sought to develop policy recommendations and evaluation tools to strengthen urban agriculture throughout the city. With other members of the team, we conducted interviews with farmers, gardeners, and staff from nonprofit organizations, foundations, and government agencies in New York, and we reviewed city agency and organizational records to complement what we learned through the interviews. The photographer Rob Stephenson, whose photos appear in this book, captured the vibrancy of New York Citys urban agriculture system, and the projects graphic designer depicted important aspects of the system through a series of infographics. A number of the study participants and other individuals familiar with policy making and evaluation served as advisers to strengthen the final recommendations and report.
