This, admittedly, came from a Green Party press release, but I thought its summation of why we need to fight for South Central Farms, as well as other community gardens, was eloquent and concise. The synopsis of the plight of the farm is right on.
The farmers will be evicted next week by big developer Ralph Horowitz, who was given a secret, "sweetheart deal" by the city of Los Angeles. He was allowed to buy the property for only $5.1 million, when it was appraised a decade ago for three times that. Horowitz is demanding the farmers pay him $16 million or he'll kick them off the land and build a warehouse. "We support the farmers' resistance to eviction, to relocation, to environmental racism," said Linda Piera-Avila, secretary of the Los Angeles Greens. "In the shadow of downtown's skyscrapers, in an economically disadvantaged area, their farm stands as a testament to the power of multi-racial community building, local food production, the environmental value of green open space and social justice in the face of corporate greed and lack of civic accountability," she added. Farmers say they are preparing to stay on urban farm even if they lose in court. They are prepared to risk arrest, but Piera-Avila said Los Angeles area Greens "stand in solidarity with the South Central Farmers who have taken personal responsibility for nurturing this 14 acre urban jewel of life. "This is the kind of global responsibility the Green Party advocates. With peak oil's effects looming, the South Central Farmers can teach us how to live more sustainably. Their skills should be lauded by the City of L.A. as a valuable resource to be emulated, far more worthwhile to our future and to the planet than any warehouse could ever be," she said. Amen, Sister. david David King, Garden Master The Learning Garden www.thelearninggarden.org office 310.722.3656 A garden, where one may enter in and forget the whole world, cannot be made in a week, nor a month, nor a year; it must be planned for, waited for and loved into being. Chinese Proverb ______________________________________________________ The American Community Gardening Association listserve is only one of ACGA's services to community gardeners. To learn more about the ACGA and to find out how to join, please go to http://www.communitygarden.org To post an e-mail to the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe, unsubscribe or change your subscription: https://secure.mallorn.com/mailman/listinfo/community_garden
