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Soil Health & Racial Justice — What?!

Farmers Seeking to Create a Just, De-centralized, Diverse Food & Farming System Talk Economic & Racial Justice

By Barbara Sogn-Frank
April 5, 2022

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The Questions…

What does soil health have to do with racial justice? Why does the Land Stewardship Project write articles and posts about racial justice for mostly homogenous, white audiences in rural, farming communities? From time to time, LSP soil health organizers are asked these questions by farmers at our field days and workshops.

Some answers to those questions came from a group of farmers at a gathering at the Stockton Community Center in southeastern Minnesota on a frigid, icy, winter Saturday in February. On that day, 18 southeastern Minnesota farmers plus some non-farming rural residents — all LSP members — came together to attend an economic justice and racial justice day-long workshop. The event offered opportunities to hear stories, share stories, ask questions, and learn about historic and present realities regarding how racial justice and agricultural economic justice are and have been deeply tied together and how the impacts are felt.

Workshop participant Karen Stettler presented a quilt she made as a reminder that we can all work together for positive change in our communities — one leaf at a time.

In response to the question, “Why are you here today?” this group of farmers revealed a shared desire to gather with other farmers, on-purpose, to think and discuss where hope lies for bringing about an agricultural economy, production system, society, and communities that thrive in health, prosperity and well-being.

Responses…

Over the past couple of years leading up to this winter workshop, many one-to-one conversations between LSP staff and LSP farmers have taken place. These conversations played a vital role in helping us learn from LSP’s farming and rural community members exactly what their concerns and desires are for how our organization works on and communicates about building upon the values of stewardship, justice, health, democracy and community. LSP staff can only have confidence that our work is on track when we know that it’s rooted in the mission and vision that our members have told us aligns with their values.

Following are some of the things that workshop attendees said they hoped to get out of a day together sharing and learning about the past and present situation when it comes to economic and racial justice in our American food and farming systems. They said they wanted to:

  • Hear authentic personal stories from other farmers from the community that help widen understanding of how economic justice and racial justice plays out in the community.
  • Gain confidence and use our skills to feel empowered to speak up and take action for economic and racial justice.
  • Hear discussions with representatives of minority groups and gain insight into other opinions, values, perspectives, and additional historical knowledge.
  • Find allies in a shared cause.
  • Learn in community and gain ideas for ways to think and explain things.
  • Do a deep dive into the topics of economic and racial justice…and maybe be pushed a little into discomfort….(but) have these conversations in a safe space.
  • Share activity and discussions with a group on how to better create dialog, community and educational learning with farmers of color. It’s hard as a white person to insert yourself and initiate contact when it comes to racial justice issues.

Throughout the Saturday workshop, attendees broke into pairs and small groups to share stories and consider tough questions. They participated in exercises that illuminated the realities of our economic system’s effects on people representing various socioeconomic standings. They heard from farmers in their community.

Winona County farmer and grazier Dan Wilson told of his efforts to “build power with other farmers who are also stuck in this economic machine.” His experience includes standing up and speaking out while working with others to reject racism and discrimination against vulnerable migrants and immigrants, most recently by fighting and winning against a community-severing proposal to construct an ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) detention facility in southeastern Minnesota.

Vegetable producer Sandy Dietz told a profound story about the brutal effects of agricultural lending practices and market forces on small and mid-sized independent family farmers. Her story highlighted the power of community which helped her family keep their farm operational after a couple of bad years of extreme weather and market conditions threatened to wipe out decades of focused, hard, smart, successful work building living soil and providing healthy food.

A key component of the workshop centered on walking the length of an 80-foot “Equity in the Food System Timeline,” which was created by a team led by farmer Zoe Hollomon of Midwest Farmers of Color Collective and Pesticide Action Network North America (PANNA). The food and farming policy timeline provides a stunning snapshot of a long history of oppressive control over large groups of people (primarily people of color) by small groups of people (primarily white) over the centuries through control of land, life, and food. As Zoe said, “We believe that shared education about the history of racist policies and actions is essential so that we don’t repeat them.”

“Racial equity and justice work requires work at the personal level, at the organizational level, and at the systemic level. It’s about how…we show up every day, how we resist the norm, how we open decision-making tables, how we are allies, use our privilege,” said Susan Phillips, co-creator and co-facilitator of the timeline. “The work starts with us.”

Workshop attendees said that exposure to the Equity in the Food System Timeline, along with the discussions it prompted, helped them gain a heartfelt sense of historic, systemic abuse of power, how pervasive it is, that the system is still in play today, and that there is hope to create a new, just food and farming system.

A full day of connecting, learning, talking, laughing, relating, eating great local food and grappling with tough challenges concluded with a visual reminder in the form of quilted art presented by Karen Stettler, LSP land access organizer. Karen’s story of the tree she quilted sent everyone out with bright and hopeful reminders. We left thinking about the power of people working together for healthy land, clean water, and a sustainable environment. We were also reminded of our power to establish healing, just markets and economies, and to create beauty and livelihoods that help people and the planet thrive.

One Step at a Time…

We noted that some people have commented that LSP should “stay in its lane,” and that talking about racial and economic justice doesn’t have anything to do with farming. In fact, LSP’s “lane” has always been built on working for social, racial, and economic justice in our agricultural system, as our latest long range plan makes clear. The Land Stewardship Project launched in 1982 in response to the economic farm crisis and massive soil erosion. These two destructive forces resulted from policies advanced by people like the late Earl Butz, who was the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture between 1971 and 1976 and who favored promoting “get big or get out” large-scale corporate farming, no matter what it did to our land, communities, and food system.

We need to build the kind of soil health that supports healthier food, vibrant communities, and prosperous farms. And it’s become clear in recent years that living soil is critical to create sustainability in our environment and to counteract climate change.

Countering the “get big or get out” movement, 40 years ago LSP identified foundational values for creating a thriving food and farming system: stewardship, justice, health, democracy, and community. Wherever our lives are centered — town or country — we are all affected by systems we inherited and are now involved in creating, dismantling, or perpetuating either on-purpose or without thinking about it.

The same forces that created an unsustainable food and farming system that devastates the land and our communities undermines the ability of all people to thrive. A truly sustainable and regenerative agriculture system is rooted in healthy soil as well as justice and fairness for everyone, no matter their color or background. That’s why LSP will keep moving down this lane as much as possible — one leaf at a time.

LSP soil health organizer Barb Sogn-Frank can be reached at 612-400-6357 or via e-mail. To get involved with LSP’s racial justice work, click here.

Category: Blog
Tags: agriculture policy • economic justice • local food systems • racial justice • regional food systems • soil health • state policy

Upcoming Events

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May 2025

Saturday May 17

11:00 am – 5:00 pm
Community Plant & Seed Swap
Saturday May 17
11:00 am – 5:00 pm
Community Plant & Seed Swap
Lift Bridge Brewing, 1900 Tower Dr W, Stillwater, MN 55082, USA

Lift Bridge Brewing Co. and Sustainable Farming Association are partnering to host a free seed and plant swap and fundraiser at Lift Bridge’s taproom in Stillwater. Vendor opportunities available. 
 
Details here.

Tuesday May 20

7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Webinar on Agrivoltaics: Sheep Solar Grazing Producer Panel
Tuesday May 20
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Webinar on Agrivoltaics: Sheep Solar Grazing Producer Panel
Zoom Virtual

Participants will hear from sheep producers about their experiences, along with the benefits and challenges of grazing sheep under solar panels. This webinar is part of a series about cattle and sheep solar grazing and growing forages or grain crops under solar panels.
 
For details and to register, click here.

Thursday May 29

9:00 am – 12:30 pm
Storytelling for Sales: Digital Marketing for Sustainable Farmers
Thursday May 29
9:00 am – 12:30 pm
Storytelling for Sales: Digital Marketing for Sustainable Farmers
Zoom Online

Storytelling for Sales: Digital Marketing Best Practices to Get Your Farm’s Next Customer is designed to help farmers grow their customer base by sharpening their storytelling and digital marketing skills—whether they’re selling through farmers’ markets, CSAs, or direct-to-retail. This Greener Pastures and Meet the Minnesota Makers workshop will cover how websites and social media can actually convert viewers into buyers to creating content that builds community loyalty.

This workshop is also designed for ag educators, professionals, and partner organizational staff who support farmers directly and want to be well-versed on the marketing best practices to support direct-to-consumer farms. 

For details and to register, click here.

Saturday May 31

10:00 am – 12:30 pm
Multi-species Pasture Walk
Saturday May 31
10:00 am – 12:30 pm
Multi-species Pasture Walk
872 320th Ave, Frederic, WI 54837, USA

The NW Wisconsin Graziers Network, River Country RC&Dand UW-Madison Extension invite you to a multi-species pasture walk hosted by JohnsonFamily Pastures LLC. The farm is located five miles east of Frederic in PolkCounty. This educational event willemphasize direct marketing, multi-species grazing, part-time family agricultureand silvopasture development. Light snacks and refreshments will be provided.

TheJohnson Family Pastures farm is home to Chris and Tamara Johnson and their twochildren. They raise grass-fed beef, silvopastured goats, and recently raised anumber of other species. The farm consists of about 160 acres of gently rollingpastures, silvopasture, and forest. Use of both temporary polybraid fencing andhigh tensile permanent fences allow for rotational grazing of small ruminants andout-wintering of beef cattle. Use of long-term farm transition strategies, cost-shareprograms, silvopasture development with goats, regenerative grazing, cattlehandling facility and bale grazing will be discussed along with answering anyand all questions from pasture walk participants.

An extensive and diversified direct marketing programhas been developed by Tamara and Chris that has included farmer markets, e-maillists, newsletters, website ordering, on-farm freezer storage, and other strategiesand tools to support direct sales and services for their customers.  Come and learn all about their successfulapproach.

For more information,contact Chris Johnson at 920-960-4475 or Lynn Johnson 715-225-9882 at NW Graziers.

June 2025

Wednesday June 25

2:00 pm – 5:00 pm
LSP-PFI Grazing Field Day at Hoosier Ridge Ranch
Wednesday June 25
2:00 pm – 5:00 pm
LSP-PFI Grazing Field Day at Hoosier Ridge Ranch
Hoosier Ridge Ranch, 15998 Wabasha County Rd 26, Altura, MN 55910, USA

Over the last 50 years, livestock have left many farms. Eric Heins is doing the reverse: bringing cattle – and their poop, pee and hooves – back to his land. Come see how Eric is using his Normande-shorthorn crosses in a variety of grazing situations. During this Land Stewardship Project-Practical Farmers of Iowa field day, you can view permanent pasture, where Eric (like everyone) is battling the cool-season grass takeover. You’ll also learn how Eric is using his cattle in cover crop mixes, prairie and woodlands.

Since purchasing the farm in 2020, Eric has converted the cropland to pasture. He also custom-farms a diverse rotation of crops, covers and small grains on neighboring farms, including an established prairie on Iowa Department of Natural Resources land. A possible bonus: Eric is hoping to have virtual fence collars by the time of the field day, but no guarantees!

A meal featuring Hoosier Ridge Ranch burgers will follow the field day.

See & Discuss

  • Cash-flowing the conversion to pasture on owned versus rented cropland
  • Stockpiling pasture for winter grazing
  • Mechanical buckthorn clearing for silvopasture
  • Grazing agreements on DNR prairie and neighboring cropland
  • A sudangrass mix after a canning pea crop
  • An extended rotation with oats, barley and Kernza

For details and to register, click here.

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