Honor Dr. King: Protest to End Food Apartheid in Baltimore
Monday, January 17 - 2:00 p.m.
City Hall, Gay & Fayette Sts, Baltimore
Hosted by Peoples Power Assembly
WE ARE COMING TOGETHER TO FIGHT FOOD DESERTS
Residents in four major communities in Baltimore have been actively countering food deserts. Each community has suffered major supermarket closings and or curtailing community efforts to feed people directly through gardens or other means. Of course, the problem of affordable, healthy food is not confined to these four areas -- and we welcome every community.
These include: Pigtown/Washington Village; Sandtown-Matthew Henson - West Harlem Park - Bridgeview GreenLawn - Midtown Edmondson; Cherry Hill; and Oliver - Broadway/East - Johnson Square
The following demands are for discussion and are evolving based on community input.
-Create Opportunity Zones for these 4 areas -- if Under Armour can receive “opportunity zone” status and downtown businesses can receive financial benefits, why not Baltimore’s neighborhoods?
-Federal, State and City subsidized Markets. -Community control of vacant lots for people’s gardens. -Rollback food prices -- lower requirements to extend food stamp programs especially for seniors & low wage workers. -Provide special transportation for seniors, youth, disabled & poor residents or arrange delivery of food. -Train and hire residents from each affected area for union jobs. -Protect and guarantee union rights for all workers in subsidized supermarkets. -Form Community Action Committees in each area. -Create a Citywide Commission made up of representatives from affected communities to determine action. - Mayor & City Council call for national aid - Feed the people, not the Pentagon.
Initiated by: Peoples Power Assembly; Matthew Henson Neighborhood Association; Unemployed Workers Union
