As a boy growing up in Portland, Pastor Wilbert Hardy saw sweeping changes to his inner-Northeast Portland community. Black families in the neighborhood were relocated further east of the city to make way for what is now Legacy Emanuel Medical Center and other development projects. Those families found themselves further from the city center, and further from the access they had once enjoyed to neighborhood grocery stores and fresh produce.
The families’ struggle to find quality produce, nearby grocery stores and land of their own to farm in the years afterward represent just one generation of food justice issues, Hardy said at the June 15 Multnomah Food Summit.
Hardy, who was the keynote speaker at last week’s summit, reminded the audience that food justice issues – the summit’s theme – are not new. Hardy is the pastor at Highland Christian Center in Northeast Portland. Today families face similar challenges to lead healthy lifestyles and maintain nutritious diets, he said.
“We’re all working on it, but it is a timeless issue,” said Hardy, who is nationally recognized for his work to influence the faith community to lead healthier lives. “We are partnering with generations before us, and it’s time to reach back and acknowledge that it takes all of us to make it work for all of us.”
Hardy spoke to a crowd of more than 300 people at the third annual Food Summit, co-hosted by the county's Office of Sustainability and Health Department held at the Oregon Convention Center. He was joined by Multnomah County Chair Jeff Cogen, U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer and other panelists who spoke about topics such as urban farming, creating a Native American food hub in Portland and the barriers that older people and people with disabilities face in shopping for groceries.
“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,” Hardy said. “We can get our government to enact responsible policies. If you want our taxes to go down, let’s decrease the number of people who are dependent on tax dollars.”
While the Portland area is lauded as a foodie haven with hundreds of restaurants and 23 farmer’s markets, Cogen said it was “a huge problem” that others live in neighborhoods dominated by fast-food restaurants and convenience stores.
“Portland is a community that has fabulous access to great food – for some people,” Cogen said.
Cogen highlighted county programs established to combat food inequities and improve community health including:
- SUN Service System – The program is now in 65 schools throughout Multnomah County and provides social and support services, including academic support, health and mental health services and early childhood programs, for young people, their families and the community. Though food is a basic need for children, half of all children in the county qualify for federal free and reduced-price lunch, which is a measure of poverty. The SUN program provides meals to students who may have limited food resources at home.
- WIC – The program that promotes the nutritional health of women, infants and children created a voucher system so families can spend up to $20 per month on fresh produce at farmer’s markets.
- County Digs! – The county gives away tax-foreclosed properties for free to community organizations, governments and religious organizations to transform unused land into urban agriculture plots.
“In many ways, food issues are a microcosm of our country’s struggles for equity and human rights,” Cogen said.
Blumenauer spoke to the crowd about the expiring farm bill before Congress. The bill, renewed every five years, would pay for the conservation of farmland, ranchland and private forestation, as well as nutrition programs. The bill also would implement risk management and other programs to assist land managers across the United States. On Thursday, June 21, the U.S. Senate passed the farm bill bringing it one step closer to enactment
Summit organizer Sonia Manhas, manager of Community Wellness & Prevention for the Multnomah County Health Department, pointed to progress in the community on food issues. Policies adopted by local private and public partners in the last year have led to 5,000 elderly people eating more fruits and vegetables at Loaves & Fishes. And they’ve led to the city of Gresham including access to food in its land-use and transportation planning.
“Moving forward, it’s important to ask what can we do better?” Manhas said. “From supporting livable wages for people growing our food; to creating economic development opportunities for emerging healthy food retailers and local farmers; to setting a higher bar when it comes to nutritional quality of food we are providing to low-income children and families – we all have a stake in doing better.”
For more information:
Multnomah Food Initiative
Food Action Plan