This is a review of a film that will be screened at ReFrame Film Festival between January 27th and February 4th, 2022. 

Content warning: racism and slavery.

We have a really negative relationship with the land. And particularly with growing our food, because we were traumatized there. -Wanda Steward, urban farmer 

Follow The Drinking Gourd is a film produced by the Liberated Lens Collective, an independent community media project based in California. Director Shirah Dedman, an African-American lawyer, afroecologist and activist, shares her passion for food justice in BIPOC communities, seeking to connect the legacies of slavery, land loss and climate change to fight for equity. 

Described as a “family-friendly documentary about the Black food justice movement”, Follow the Drinking Gourd blends the experiences of numerous African-American farmers and those involved in the agriculture and food sectors, painting a vibrant picture of Black families and communities sharing how they continually overcome the trauma and abuse they (and their ancestors) have been subjected to at the hands of slavery, white supremacy and systemic racism. 

“Growing up I was told to stay away from farming, because, you know, we equated it with slavery,” Will Scott Jr. from the Scott Family Farms shared as he toured his family farm. The film also touches on the involvements of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) in terrorizing and murdering Black farmers and their families, recounting the lynching of the Walker family in 1908 through the barbaric act of “nightriding” where members of the KKK would rally to destroy Black farmers’ properties and lynch their families.

Along with the racism present in the agri-food sectors, there is also a decline in younger peoples’ means to farm. The film seeks to open the conversation about the gap that lies between generations in the agricultural field, addressing how unaffordable farming is becoming for younger generations and sharing what Black farmers have been doing to engage future generations in agriculture and food sovereignty. Featuring a local urban farming project for youth reflects these concepts, and teaches youth about farming methods such as permaculture crops and food forests and how these can be applied in cities. 

While set in urban California and confronting the racism in American agriculture, many of the struggles shared within this film are also prevalent within our Canadian society. There is a dominant presence of racism and discrimination against BIPOC and immigrants in the agriculture and food sectors, with one example being found in the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program (SAWP). There are some promises for change here and here, but I’d be a fool to pretend as if the fact that I’m white and have undergone a singular semester in agricultural studies gives me the right to comment on whether or not these promised policies are adequate or directly beneficial to farmers. So here are a few articles by BIPOC writers and farmers I found helpful:

Being a Black Farmer in a Field of White Opened my Eyes to Canada’s Agriculture Diversity Problem by Abdul-Rahim Abdula 

Three Black Farmers and the Fight for Diminished Land in Southern Ontario by Ramona Leitao

How BIPOC Farmers are Working to Make Rural Agriculture More Diverse by Jason Vermes

Blending history, family stories, passionate individuals and innovative organizations, Follow the Drinking Gourd delivers a multifaceted exegesis of a problem that has been inflicted upon BIPOC farmers throughout the United States (and Canada) for centuries. The scenes feel personal and intimate, almost as if the world was virus-free and we were able to fly to California and learn first-hand from the farmers featured. This film would be great for anyone looking to learn more about intersectional justice through the lens of the agri-food world, or for anyone looking to watch a short, quirky documentary about food and anti-racism during the ReFrame Film Festival.