How Urban Gardening Can Save Black Communities

[LiberalArkie]

by Bill Kilby

Before the urban farming boom—even before Michelle Obama popularized the phenomena of "food deserts"—there was Ron Finley—a man who calls himself a "gangster gardener," and who started urban gardening on the strip of dirt outside his home in South Los Angeles. In 2013, it was Finley who convinced the LA City Council, after years of debate, to allow fruit and vegetable plots on public parkways.

Los Angeles-based filmmaker Delila Vallot heard about Finley's efforts, and decided to dig past the rhetoric to see if urban gardening was delivering on the hype. Her journey through the gardens of LA's neediest neighborhoods culminates this week in a new documentary, Can You Dig This, which will be available on VOD Tuesday. The documentary, which features Finley, follows four residents of South LA: two 20-somethings who join the Compton Community Garden, a halfway house resident who learns to garden, and an eight-year-old girl who turns her garden into a money-making venture. As each of the subjects struggle to overcome personal hurdles and systemic challenges in their communities, the film focuses on the small-scale victories they get from urban gardening.

I spoke with Vallot and Finley about their vision for the film, the importance of having a hand in food production, and how gardening can be a seed for social transformation.



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