Access to a healthy, nutritious and ample supply of food is a necessity for people, and they need to be facilitated by their governing bodies and authorities in order to fulfill their basic needs. There are yet many communities and ethnicities in the country that are deprived of access to healthy and nutritious food which can be bought within their strength of purchase. For the wealthy and influential, it is not much of a problem to facilitate the people and provide them food with good standards and reasonable cost. It is not news for the current day or from the past decade, that food insecurity and unequal distribution of healthy, nutritious food has remained problematic for the African American or Hispanic and Latin American population. What needs to be realized is that by creating a system which will help to provide good, healthy food for the people on a large scale will not only provide food, it will also create employment on the farms, increase revenue and help to empower the people earning meager salaries. Therefore, Will Allen puts forward the same point that providing access to food to the underprivileged in the society is not an act of heroism; it is a reformation of society for its sole better. This makes Will Allen a reformist who tries to bring change and improvement amongst the people he represents, especially those of his race, who are underprivileged and need assistance in food provision. His aim is not only to help them gaining this food but also to involve them in the circle, make them a part of the process and help them earn some revenue to make a living and eventually bring an end to food insecurity, making the people self-sufficient.
As much as Will Allen is famous for his basketball career beginning at a very tender age, he is equally famous for his food activism. Will Allen started as a young basketball player in high school and was able to make his way to the University of Miami. “He was the first African-American male basketball player representing the University in history.” (Allen). Although he was called to play for the NBA, he declined and rather played for The Floridians of the ABA. He also played briefly in Belgium. Allen retired at the age of 28 and moved to Milwaukee, his wife’s hometown. He started a career in marketing at KFC and Procter and Gamble but then retired from it to begin a new venture. His parents were sharecroppers, and he initially had no intention of farming, but he went ahead and bought a two-acre plot half a mile away from Milwaukee. He pooled in the money from his retirement and other sources and bought the land to farm in. in the face of adversities and strict means of earning, Will Allen established himself as an urban farmer by making the country’s most prominent urban farm facilitate the nearby community.
According to his own work, titled The Good Food Revolution Will Allen was one man who began not only a series of inspirational work that would outline him in history as a reformist for the underprivileged, but it also brought forth his personal story and experiences. Allen had begun this course with a lot of financial strain because his only major savings were those he managed to scrape off from his retirement money. He still decided to go ahead and help the people of the country who were deprived of healthy food. He knew that “agriculture was important for the sustainability of land and resources, and it was one means by which the people could benefit from the land.” (Allen). However, they were not rich enough to begin something huge on their own. Growing Power became a project very close to Will Allen’s heart as it was a
the manifestation of his dream to help the people he was near to. He had planted “a small garden in his new home after marriage to psychologically alleviate himself from the thought of food deprivation” (Allen) and it became his dream to pursue in life. In the farm he so dearly made, he began to grow fresh produce, and the farm became an all-time job. Allen was not alone in this venture because he had the support of his friends, family, partners in business and the rest of the African American community in general. As Allen writes, “The black community was one underprivileged and neglected part of the society that needed attention.” (Allen). The community loved the produce by Growing Power, as it had good quality and was produced in plenty. With growing influence, many other communities took to assisting urban farming and helping it spread to other food insecure communities. Allen gave many important farming tips as well that can be helpful for urban farming on a large scale.
Allen knew that urban farming in this method would help provide a channel for the youth to learn, spend time at and earn money from. Many kids would come to the farm to spend time after school as it was safe and welcoming for them. As these children were mostly poor, the aim of Growing Power was to facilitate them through job-training and providing skills that would help gain knowledge on farming (Growing Power). The programs being offered at the farm were related to the provision of academic as well as professional work experience to the youth via the Community Food Development program. “It would shed light on agricultural skills and knowledge and enable them to build and maintain aquaponic systems, learn about soil fertility, raising seeds vermiculture, food distribution, and many other farm-related practices.” (Growing Power).Youth would be trained in occupational services and would also gain leadership skills.
Therefore, Will Allen became an urban farmer who decided to alleviate the people from food inaccessibility and food insecurity by beginning a farm that would educate and assist the youth in learning and beginning farming as a means of earning. Thus putting an end to their social problems and suffering.
Work Cited
Allen, Will. The Good Food Revolution. 2012. 17 Mar 2016 < http://www.amazon.com/The-Good-Food-Revolution-Communities/dp/1592407609>.
Growing Power. Youth Corps. 2016. 17 Mar 2016 <http://www.growingpower.org/programs/youth-corps/>.
