Agriculture has long been weaponized as a tool for exploitation, but in equal measure, also purposed as a resource for resistance and renewal. This month, with the observance of Juneteenth, we are reminded of how food and farming serve as powerful catalysts in the pursuit of justice.

June 19^th, 1865 may have marked the end of slavery with the final enforcement of the Emancipation Proclamation, yet exploitative agricultural practices continued throughout the United States, including here in North Carolina. Reparations in the form of promised land redistribution were thwarted, sharecropping effectively perpetuated slavery under a new name, and tenant farming kept land and agricultural yield in the hands of white owners.

But even with the food system in complete disarray and the livelihoods of almost all North Carolina residents dependent on the agricultural economy, Black communities forged new pathways toward sovereignty. One method was the formation of agrarian, political, educational, and financial cooperatives and other organizing efforts which brought economic and social progress for decades.

In the 1870s, the Kingdom of the Happy Land formed in Henderson County, providing self-sustained, communal livelihoods for numerous families.

The Knights of Labor began organizing in the Raleigh-Durham area in 1884.

North Carolina was a hub for the Colored Farmers Alliance, a multi-state mutual aid society that came to NC in 1887.

NC A&T State College was founded in Greensboro in 1891 as the first college for people of color in the state, where folks could pursue agriculture and horticulture among other studies.

The Mechanics and Farmers Bank was founded in Durham in 1908, which contributed to the evolution of Black Wall Street.

These early social justice efforts altered the trajectory of North Carolina’s Black communities forever, and they continue to inspire us amidst the inequities of today. The 1920’s marked the height of Black land ownership at just 26%. Today, only 3% of farmland in North Carolina is owned by farmers of color.

The story of Juneteenth, and the movements in its wake, remind us that the narrative can change and our food system is a source, not just for nutrition and survival, but abundance and equity for all.

Featured image: Wife of Resettled Farmer, Roanoke Farms, North Carolina.

Many local organizations put new food futures in motion every day for farmers and communities in North Carolina and beyond. Here are some of the groups we learn from, partner with, and are inspired by:

RAFI • CORE • THE BLACK FARMERS MARKET • COMMUNITY FOOD STRATEGIES • UCAN