CAROL MOSELY BRAUN SPOKE OF SEEING AFRICAN AMERICANS SHOPPING AT GROCERY STORES FAR FROM HOME, LOOKING FOR BETTER QUALITY FOODS.
IT’S NOT ACCEPTABLE THAT A GOOD PIECE OF FRUIT REQUIRES A DAY TRIP.
BUT WHAT ABOUT THE FOLKS WHO AREN’T ABLE TRAVEL THAT FAR?
WHERE ARE THEY BUYING THEIR GROCERIES?
FAR TOO MANY ARE FALLING BACK ON GAS STATIONS, LIQUOR STORES AND FRINGE GROCERS THAT DO NOT HAVE A LOT TO PICK FROM.
RESEARCHER, MARI GALLAGHER CALLS THESE AREAS FOOD DESERTS, AND HER DATA SHOWS THAT SOME 600,000 CHICAGOANS LIVE IN ONE. MOST ARE AFRICAN AMERICAN; MANY ARE CHILDREN.
HIGHER RATES OF FOOD RELATED DEATHS CORRESPOND TO FOOD DESERT COMMUNITIES,
AS DO DIABETES, OBESITY AND HEART DISEASE.
THE CHICAGO URBAN LEAGUE SUPPORTS MAINSTREAM AND BLACK-OWNED GROCERS IN URBAN COMMUNITIES. WHEN GALLAGHER RELEASED HER FIRST STUDY IN 2006, THE URBAN LEAGUE HELD A FORUM TO BRING ATTENTION TO THE ISSUE.
SHE UPDATED HER STUDY LAST YEAR, AND FOUND THAT FOOD DESERTS IN CHICAGO SHRANK IN GENERAL. BUT THE SITUATION GOT WORSE IN AREAS LIKE CHATHAM, WHICH LOST TWO GROCERY STORES, AFFECTING SOME 16,000 PEOPLE.
GALLAGHER HAS A FORMULA SHE USES TO CALCULATE POTENTIAL YEARS OF LIFE GAINED BY IMPROVING ACCESS TO QUALITY FOODS IN POOR COMMUNITIES.
YEARS OF LIFE: AS IN LIVING LONGER -- HEALTHY.
THAT IS WHAT’S AT STAKE.
WE’D LIKE TO HEAR YOUR THOUGHTS, AND MAYBE SOME SOLUTIONS, ABOUT FOOD DESERTS AND WHAT THE CITY, BUSINESSES AND COMMUNITIES CAN DO TO END THE DROUGHT.
we can reduce the number of food deserts by allowing strong, large retailers like WalMart to do business in the city. WalMart would love to open more stores in or near some of the black community's most blighted area. However, some alderman, who supposedly have our best interest in mind, make it exceedingly difficult for WalMart by imposing onerous requirements. Let's take our destiny back in our hands and get folks like WalMart supercenters--which provide fresh foods at good prices --into the Chicago communities that need them the most.
ReplyDeleteI am one of those who is able to travel far for better produce. I don't like to do it but because I work outside of the city I do see the differences in the suburban stores. For example, in the episode today Ambassador Braun mentioned that she saw a lot of Black people in suburban stores that most likely did not live in the area. I often go to Pete's Produce on the South Side and it is always busy. However on my way to and from work, I pass by Pete's Produce in Oak Lawn. What a difference! Not only are we, Black people, everywhere but this Pete's offers so much more than some of the other Pete's. Why is it that chains often open their better looking and better supplied stores in the suburbs? I am sorry to answer a question with a question but I get so tired of seeing this happen. There have been Black grocers in the inner city that somehow fell through the cracks for whatever reason (lack of resources, support' etc.) and it looks as though the message we send is Black people don't support their own. So we are left making meals from a supply that is not as nourishing as others. I am sure there are many of you who remember eating ketchup or mayonaise sandwiches. Well some of our elderly and children are still eating like this on a regular basis. Webster defines a desert as being a dry land with few plants and little rainfall. This is exactly what we see in some of the neighborhood corner stores, convenience stores, etc. When we walk in the store all he have to choose from is a dry land with few 'real vegetables' and very little if any 'water'. There is no single answer. I think it will take looking at safety issues, store owners changing what they offer us, Black people looking at ourselves and what we teach our children. Just a few thoughts. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteWalmart, NOT. The food desert issue is overused and the data is flawed. I live in Chatham and with access to over four grocery stores and over four produce markets that sell fresh produce and meat yet my community has been referred to as a food desert(Walmart fans). Yes there are communities that are true "food deserts"(stores greater than 1 mile)and that is where community based organizations and the faith community step up and have organized farmer markets that can serve the needs of that community.
ReplyDeleteAs a young girl growing up on the westside of Chicago, I witnessed the closing of all the Jewel food stores in the different neighborhoods and Aldi's was brought in. This caused the food selection to become very unhealthy because Aldi's food is very processed and packed with high levels of salt and sodium and the availability of fresh fruit and produce became almost obsolete. I agree that we need to take back our neighborhoods and demand that a Walmart supercenter be brought into our communities. As a graduate student I am prpoposins a thesis on the high mortality rate of African-Americans due to coronary heart disease and these are some of the topics I have researched as to why our neighborhoods are deficient in grocery stores that provide healthy options? Blacks are dying at an alarming rate due to this disease and no one seems to be talking about it.
ReplyDeleteLook at innovative ways our communities have been dealing with this issue come visit Eden Place Nature Center
ReplyDeletewww.edenplacenaturecenter.c0m
Please visit my site Hotmail customer service
ReplyDelete