CAGJ HAPPENINGS

No Food Justice Project Meeting in July

Due to Riseup! Summer School activities, there will be no Food Justice Project Meeting in July! Contact us to learn how to volunteer and get involved in our Solidarity Campaigns, or for info about future meetings.

SAT Sept 29: SLEE Dinner

Summer Internships, Dinner Organizers, Table Captains & Sponsorship Opportunities

We are now seeking Sponsors, Table Captains and SLEE Dinner Organizers to make our 12th annual Strengthening Local Economies Everywhere Dinner a roaring success! SLEE brings together over 300 people for a locally sourced and Fair Trade meal, who will have the pleasure of hearing Edgar Franks deliver the keynote, “The Legacy We Inherit: Luchando por una Vida AgroEcológica,” reflecting on agroecology as a way of life. Edgar organizes farmworkers with Community to Community Development in Bellingham, WA. If you are interested in being a Sponsor or a Table Captain (organize 9 of your friends to join you at SLEE!), please contact Mollie.

Seeking SLEE Dinner Organizers! Volunteers and Summer Interns are invited to join our team to contribute to the vision of SLEE, and make it even more spectacular than past years! Learn valuable skills in the areas of nonprofit development and fundraising, community engagement and outreach, communications, and event planning. The following positions are available: Auction Coordination; Food & Farm Outreach, Social Media & Publicity. We are currently accepting interns for summer quarter if you would like academic credit, or a minimum of 10 weeks between now and mid-October. Please send an introductory email explaining your interest and availability to Mollie at [email protected]. Thank you!

OCT 12-15 in Bellingham, WA

IV National Assembly of US Food Sovereignty Alliance

On October 12 – 15, 2018, grassroots organizations, activists, faith-based community, scholars, union members, farmers and fisherfolk, and other food chain workers from around the US and the world will converge on Bellingham, WA, for the IV National Assembly of the US Food Sovereignty Alliance (USFSA). Details forthcoming! Sign up here to be the first to know as Assembly details become available — call for proposals, plenary speakers, registration links, & more. CAGJ is helping to organize the gathering, and we need volunteer support! Please contact us to get involved.

Share very affordable Office Space in ID with CAGJ!

CAGJ is seeking a new co-tenant, and we just got an office make-over thanks to Seattle University! Two adjacent desks available now for $300/month in our warm community office space in the International District. Close to many bus lines and light rail station, and amazing restaurants and cafes surround the office. We are a diverse group of people with deep commitments to social, economic, climate, and racial justice and toward collective liberation in our work and personal lives. We uphold clear, direct communication and community agreements around sharing our space. We meet monthly to share lunch, updates, and to address current needs in the office. The space is colorful, brightly decorated, and includes a shared conference room and kitchen. Contact us to arrange a visit.

TAKE ACTION

Take Action: Stop the Expansion of H2A!

SAVE the DATE: SUN AUG 5, March for Farmworker Rights in Linden

“We must confront issues of broken labor laws and racism and defend workers' right to organize in order to achieve immigrant justice and food sovereignty!” – Community to Community

Last August, farmworkers at Sarbanand Farms under the H2A guestworker visa program were fired for striking when Honesto Silva Ibarra died due to health complications exacerbated by extreme dehydration and low food rations while working and living in a prison camp-like setting. In February, the Dept. of Labor and Industries found the farm not negligent in the death of Honesto, despite having denied his requests for health care. The Dept. also found Sarbanand Farms had committed 13 violations last summer related to depriving farmworkers of rest breaks and serving their meals late. They were only fined for two of those violations. Now Sarbanand Farms plans to bring in over 600 workers through the H2A guestworker program, a legal quasi-slave labor program. Read more from Community to Community here, and contact us for more details about the planned march on SUN August 5 with C2C in Linden, WA.

Fight the expansion of H2A in Whatcom County and WA State!

Call Governor Inslee (360-902-4111) to demand he form a special task force to investigate the impact of the H2A program on farmworker families and our state economy.
Call the Dept. of Labor and Industries Director Joel Sacks (360-902-5584) and demand that the Dept. re-open the investigation in the death last summer of Honesto Silva Ibarra.
Call your Legislator in the House of Representatives and tell them to vote no on "Security America's Future Act of 2018," HR 4760! Find your representative here.

Action Alert: Tell USDA we Need Clear GMO Labeling

Center for Food Safety Action Alert: The Time is Now!

On May 3, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released its long-awaited proposed regulations for the mandatory labeling of foods produced using genetic engineering (GE). Unfortunately, some of USDA's proposal just does not pass muster and other parts are unclear or undecided. Even worse, the proposed rule once again promotes the use of digital QR codes that require a smart phone and an internet connection. USDA did not make it clear whether processed foods made with GE commodity crops (corn, soy, canola, and GE beet-derived sugar) should require labels, or whether food products made with newer GE technology will be included. On top of that, the labeling law requires regulations be finalized by July 29, 2018 - but USDA would allow companies to postpone GE labeling until as late as 2022 and permit them to use up labels without GE content information. We have waited long enough for labeling! Tell the USDA we need clear GMO labeling now!

CAGJ NEWS & ANALYSIS

Positive outcome for Maru Mora Villalpando, NW Detention Center Resistance Leader, Targed by ICE

Maru Mora Villalpando has been involved in struggles for immigrants’ rights in the US for two decades. In the past several years she has become known nationally for being an outspoken critic of ICE, and a leader of resistance and solidarity actions with immigrants detained at the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma. In December she received notice of deportation herself, which was largely seen as a politically motivated attack, as she has made it known publically that she is undocumented. Last week a large protest took place to support her and her daughter as she faced her second deportation hearing. While Maru faced the immigration court, supporters outside listened to a panel of “judges” weigh in on whether Maru or ICE is guilty (ICE!). After she emerged, she and her lawyer shared the good news that the judge seemed favorable towards her chances of staying in the US through a green card application. Read more about Maru’s case, watch a beautiful video of the protest here, and read an article co-authored by Maru to understand the significance of the growing call to #AbolishICE, “We Fell in Love in a Hopeless Place: A Grassroots History from #Not1More to Abolish ICE”. In addition, see Mijente’s platform, “Free Our Future: An Immigration Policy Platform for Beyond the Trump Era”.

CAGJ screens "Salmon People" and connects with America the Bountiful Tour at Indigenuos Environmental Network Conference

This past week-end Heather Day had the privilege of participating in the Indigenous Environmental Network Protecting Mother Earth conference, hosted by the Nisqually Indian Tribe. She joined Niaz Dorry and Lisa Griffith who are in the midst of the America The Bountiful Tour, a two-month tour of rural fishing and farming communities around the US. The tour kickstarts a new era in our movements, as Niaz begins her role as the director of both the Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance and the National Family Farm Coalition (of which CAGJ is a member), who have joined forces more formally by adopting a shared leadership model. (The new banner in the photo of Heather and Niaz reflects this new partnership!) Read Niaz’s reflection on the first leg of the tour, Love Is Everywhere. You can read more about America The Bountiful Tour here.

We are very grateful that our short film, “Salmon People: The Risks of Genetically Engineered Fish for the Pacific Northwest” was screened twice at the conference (please watch & share - it's only 3.5 minutes!). Most of the IEN conference was filmed! Watch “Taking Back our Ocean Commons” with Hanford McCloud, Willy Frank, and Peggen Frank, moderated by Niaz Dorry, and see other workshops and plenaries here.

African Civil Society Groups Align to Condemn the Bayer Monsanto Merger and the Corporate Takeover of African Food Systems

Statement of AFSA: Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa

Why are we saying no? Because we are dedicated to the cause of food sovereignty, the right of peoples to healthy and culturally appropriate food produced through ecologically sound and sustainable methods, and their right to define their own food and agriculture systems. Why now? Because we see countries like Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia and Swaziland opening their doors wide to GMOs, and other countries following despite the evidence of failure in other African countries. And because we see the two biggest biotech companies Monsanto and Bayer merge to create a massive new threat to African food sovereignty. Read the rest of the statement here.

AGRA Watch Blog: Synthetic Biology Threatens African Biodiversity, Health and Livelihoods By Jean Fallow, AGRA Watch Intern

“What Does Synthetic Biology Mean for Africa?” is written by Dr. Eva Sirinathsinghji and Mariam Mayet of the Building International Capacity on Synthetic Biology Assessment and Governance (BICSBAG) Project, which is coordinated by the African Center for Biodiversity, ETC Group, and the Third World Network. AGRA Watch Summary: This 2018 analysis describes some of the potential dangers posed by recent technological innovations in “synthetic biology.” This oxymoronic term encompasses a range of genetic engineering techniques including DNA/RNA synthesis, genome editing, sequencing, and gene drives. The report focuses on the risks involved in exporting these techniques from the U.S. and Europe to African nations, arguing that while “the claimed modus operandi of many of the latest developments is to help Africa to feed itself, in the absence of domestic biotechnology expertise, it also conveniently provides the opportunity for the shaping of the biosafety discourse to suit the technologies’ developers and others that stand to benefit from the use of the technology.” Read more.

COMMUNITY CALENDAR

SAT July 7, 11am-5pm

Seattle Frida Fest 2018

Join us as Colectiva Noroeste presents the first annual Seattle Frida Fest, a celebration of the life and art of Frida Kahlo! t the Centilia Cultural Center we will be hosting a Pop-Up Mercado with 30+ artists/crafters/vendors and a Frida inspired Art Show! Plus live performances & entertainment out in the Plaza! Including Las Lunas: A Living Gallery Walk, family activities, and food vendors. The Colectiva Noroeste is supported by SEED, as fiscal sponsor. Learn more.

SAT July 21, 10am-4pm

Farm Fest at Rainier Beach Urban Farm & Wetlands

Join us for Farm Fest, a celebration of Rainier Beach Urban Farm and Wetlands' transformation into a hub for urban farming and community in Seattle's Rainier Beach neighborhood! Presented with the Friends of Rainier Beach Urban Farm & Wetlands. Festivities will include fun activities for the whole family. Pick blueberries in the food forest, attend cooking demonstrations and learn how to make spring rolls, discover the wetlands with Shadow Lake Nature Preserve, plant seeds with Tiny Tots Development Center, and more. The Common Acre will host a pollinator workshop in the garden and we'll also be making herb crowns to wear! While you're exploring the farm, enjoy bites from food trucks like Where Ya At Matt and Frelard Tamales. The Farm Fest stage will feature live music all day, including sets from KEXP DJ Stas THEE Boss, Ben Hunter & Joe Seamons, and a performance by Dance Brazil. Local businesses and community organizations will be serving up refreshments and providing additional opportunities for getting involved in Rainier Beach. Learn more.

SAT August 18, 10-5pm

Tilth Alliance Chicken Coop & Urban Farm Tour

See Seattle's Best Urban Farms! Glean great ideas from creative neighbors who are incorporating animals and gardens into their home landscapes. In this self-guided tour, you will see simple chicken coops built in an afternoon and elaborate finely-crafted coops that took weeks of planning and building. See what's needed for keeping miniature goats, ducks, mason bees, honey bees and rabbits. There are sites all around Seattle. Enjoy a unique and inspiring urban adventure! Tilth Alliance has been hosting this event, or a version of it, since 1999. This is your chance to visit folks who are keeping chickens and creating unique and inspiring urban farms. Tickets for the Chicken Coop & Urban Farm Tour will be available online and at various local retailers at the end of June. To receive email updates, sign up for our newsletter.