A Garden Is The Frontline In The Fight Against Racial Inequality And Disease

When police killed George Floyd outside a Minneapolis corner store, it reminded the world that racism can become lethal. But just a few miles away, on the North side of the city, racial inequality plays out in a more ordinary, yet still harmful way: A lack of fresh food.

Protests after Floyd's death damaged and shut down the only full-service grocery store within a 3-mile radius of North Minneapolis. For two months, what remained were dozens of fast food and convenience stores. Access to fresh food has been a struggle for decades, but now it's compounding the health effects of the pandemic. Chronic conditions like obesity, hypertension, and diabetes — all linked to a poor diet — are putting people at higher risk of serious illness and death from COVID-19.

A group called Appetite for Change is trying to lead the community down a different path, teaching others to grow their way to healthy food. Co-founder Princess Haley, a teacher, says the mission is to improve the local diet. During the pandemic, the group has been harvesting artichokes and leafy greens to supply boxes of free produce every week to 300 local families.