As a US-based organization, the USFSA upholds the right to food as a fundamental human right and works to connect our local and national struggles to global movements led by farmers, fishers and indigenous people. Corporate-controlled industrial agriculture and fishing are significant contributors to climate change and smallholder farmers producing and harvesting food build the resiliency of ecosystems which contribute to both nourishing people and cooling the planet.
Humans have a right to the resources required to meet their basic needs and provide themselves with shelter, sustenance, and an adequate livelihood. The means of meeting these needs are often embedded in cultural practices that are vital for people’s sense of identity. Food feeds more than the body.
Climate change increases hunger. A sustainable and nutritious food supply is essential for the entire human population, but it’s also essential for the economic well-being of food producers. People who produce food – like farmers and fishers – are often hardest hit by climate change, which directly affects their family’s food supply and sources of income. With 78 percent of the world’s poor relying on farming to support their families, it’s important to develop sustainable ways of farming that support both the environment and those who rely on crops for economic stability.
The industrial food system accelerates climate change. The corporate-controlled, profit-driven industrial food system is responsible for 44-57% of all global greenhouse gas emissions. Emissions from agriculture, forestry and fisheries have nearly doubled over the past fifty years and could increase an additional 30 percent by 2050.
Industrial agriculture requires deforestation to make room for endless fields of soybeans, corn, grain, oil palm and sugar cane. It requires the dispossession (often times violently) of indigenous peoples and smallholder farmers from their territories through land grabs to make room for resource intensive mega plantations and unsustainable resource extraction. Today small farms account for 90% of all farms yet occupy less than a quarter of the agricultural land.
The industrial food system relies heavily on the extraction and refinement of fossil fuels to produce chemical insecticides and herbicides which results in nutrient depleted soils in addition to contaminated bodies and ecosystems; the further removal of land from food production; and green gas emissions due to the transportation required for global trade.
Industrial aquaculture depends on the fossil fuel driven harvest, processing and distribution of wild fish, often depleting resources and ecosystems that small scale fishers depend on while growing salmon and shrimp for first world markets.
Food sovereignty is climate justice. Cooling the planet and nourishing people go hand-in-hand. We can cool the planet AND ensure adequate food and nutrition to the world’s human population by fighting the destructive and building the new.
Food sovereignty rejects the false solutions of so-called Climate Smart Agriculture (methods that call for increased productivity and intensification) and tax incentivized conservation and reforestation and calls for the scaling out of agroecology. Agroecology is a science and practice defined in the daily lives of millions worldwide that puts food sovereignty into action. It represents both a form of agricultural production and a process for organizing and building community self-determination. Agroecology is a way of life and a pathway to end hunger, protect our natural environment and transform society. It is farming, feeding, restoring, preserving, protecting and democratizing, grounded in the ongoing accumulation of knowledge of those relying on nature’s resources to nourish their families and communities. And it begins with an intuitive understanding that ecology is about the interdependent relationships of natural organisms—including humans—to their local environment.
Food sovereignty calls for the self-determination of indigenous communities, valuing women’s leadership, and the defense of territories, land, water and seeds. A small fraction of lands and water are still in the possession of indigenous communities, farmers and fishers, nevertheless they continue to produce most of the world’s food, steward the land and defend the rights of Mother Earth. We need a food system that works for and nourishes everyone, not towards the capital gains of a small percentage of people.
Food sovereignty calls for policies that support local economies and local markets. Localizing production, processing and distribution of food cuts out the need for extensive food miles resulting in greenhouse gas emissions, and creates and supports jobs through the development of local businesses. This localization redistributes wealth, power, and decision-making into the hands of the people.
Food sovereignty calls for a deepening and strengthening of democratic processes that puts people before profitsand protects nutritious food as a fundamental human right. Food sovereignty is defined by communities’ control over the way food is produced, traded and consumed and protects their rights to define their own food and agriculture systems.
Food Sovereignty and Climate Justice is only possible through a rural-urban, internationalist alliance led by working people. As resource poor people at home experience the effects of food deserts and people around the world are violently driven from their land in the name of profit, a global response is necessary. The presence of the US Food Sovereignty Alliance in alignment with the goals of the It Takes Roots delegation at the People’s Climate March is an important step in building towards such a broad-based alliance.
Contacts:
Saulo Araujo, WhyHunger – (617) 735-5899
Stephen Bartlett, Agricultural Missions – (502) 415-1080
Lisa Griffith, National Family Farm Coalition – (773) 319-5838
Carol Schachet, Grassroots International – (617) 524-1400 or (617) 628-3455
She was a courageous voice in defense of Lenca communities and the struggle for the rights of people and of Mother Earth. During her 2015 Goldman Environmental Prize Award ceremony, Berta shared these words:
“In our worldview, we are beings who come from the Earth, from the water, and from corn. The Lenca people are ancestral guardians of the rivers, in turn protected by the spirits of young girls, who teach us that giving our lives in various ways for the protection of the rivers is giving our lives for the well-being of humanity and of this planet… Let us wake up! We’re out of time. WE must shake our conscience free of the rapacious capitalism, racism and patriarchy that will only assure our own self-destruction.
“Our Mother Earth – militarized, fenced-in, poisoned, a place where basic rights are systematically violated – demands that we take action.”
The murder of Berta Cáceres is a direct result of the ill-advised US policies for Latin America. It is past time for the US government to recognize that the financial and political support it has provided to the 2009 military coup and to the current Honduran government only fuels abuses by military personnel and the role of death squads against journalists, students and organizers, especially those at the forefront of defending land, territory, and natural resources. Berta had warned that DESA was once again invading Lenca territories, this time accompanied by private and public armed forces, including the military police called “Tigres” – trained and financed by the United States. Furthermore, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is directly supporting the Agua Zarca project through the USAID MERCADO program.
Besides Berta, other leaders from trade unions and peasant, Indigenous and Afro-descendent organizations are frequent targets of death threats.Currently, the Honduran authorities are holding one member of COPINH and an international ally Gustavo Castro as part of the criminal investigation in a clear attempt to criminalize the victims of Berta’s assassination. We ask friends and allies to participate in local actions to demand a prompt and full independent investigation into the killing of Berta Cáceres, by the Inter American Human Rights Commission. We call on everyone determined to uphold human rights to immediately contact their congressional representatives, advise them that the US support to Honduras and to the Agua Zarca hydroelectric dam project is destroying democratic rule in Honduras and killing innocent people, and demand an immediate end to such support.
Finally, we support the rightful demands of COPINH and of all Indigenous communities to protect and defend their lands and to prevent unwanted megaprojects in their territory, starting with the Agua Zarca dam project on the sacred Gualcarque River.
Next Monday, March 14 is International Day of Action Against Dams and for Rivers, Water, and Life. Around the country and around the world, organizations will be taking action in tribute to the powerful work Berta Cáceres led to protect the Gualcarque River, and in solidarity with the ongoing work of COPINH and of other movements in defense of water rights around the world. We dedicate ourselves to these struggles.
In solidarity,
US Food Sovereignty Alliance, United States
American Federation of Government Employees (AFL-CIO), Local 3354, United States
Climate Justice Alliance, United States
Grassroots Global Justice Alliance, United States
Food Chain Workers Alliance, United States
National Family Farm Coalition, United States
Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance, United States
Rural Coalition, United States
World Forum of Fisher People, Global
Action Aid, United States
Agricultural Missions, United States
American Jewish World Service, United States
Campaign for Food Justice, United States
Centro de Estudios en Ecología Política, Colombia
CIP –Americas Program, United States
Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador, United States
Committee on U.S.-Latin American Relations, United States
Community Alliance for Global Justice, United States
Community to Community, United States
Cooperation Operation, United States
Family Farm Defenders, United States
Farmworker Association of Florida, United States
Food First, United States
Global Greengrants Fund, United States
Grassroots International, United States
Groundswell International, United States
Growing Food and Justice Initiative, United States
Gulf Coast Center for Law and Policy, United States
Indigenous Environmental Network, United States
Institute for Agricultural and Trade Policy, United States
Institute for Social Ecology, United States
International Development Exchange, United States
Kairos Center for Religions, Rights and Social Justice at Union Theological Seminary, United States
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns, United States
Missourians Organizing for Reform and Empowerment, United States
Movement Generation Justice and Ecology Project, United States
National Family Farm Coalition, United States
Network in Solidarity with the People of Guatemala, United States
New Roots, United States
North Carolina Association of Black Lawyers Land Loss Prevention Project, United States
Oakland Institute, United States
Other Worlds, United States
Partners for the Land & Agricultural Needs of Traditional Peoples, United States
People’s Climate Movement-NY, United States
Pesticide Action Network – North America, United States
Rede Social de Justi ça e Direitos Humanos, Brazil
Rural Community Workers Alliance, United States
Small Planet Institute, United States
Soil Generation, United States
Soul Fire Farm, United States
Southwest Organizing Project, United States
Southwest Workers Union, United States
St. Louis Inter-Faith Committee on Latin America, United States
Surplus People’s Project, South Africa
Sustainable Agriculture of Louisville, United States
Urgent Action Fund, United States
WhyHunger, United States
Quotes :
“For decades, Berta Caceres gave everything she had to the causes of true democracy; indigenous power; protection of the earth, the forests, the rivers; rights of women and LGBT individuals; and an end of tyranny by the US government, transnational capital, and Honduran oligarchy. Berta advanced these agendas not only in Honduras, but globally – most recently even in an audience with the Pope. Now, the one thing she did not freely give has been taken from her: her very life. But she is not gone; she lives on in all of us who continue to believe in and work for a just, humane, and ecologically safe world.” – Beverly Bell, Other Worlds
“The assassination of Berta Caceres is a tremendous loss to us, and to all communities who seek justice and dignity. And her murder is an indictment on an insatiable and immoral system – supported by US policies since the 2009 coup – that grabs ancestral lands from indigenous communities, poisons and privatizes waterways and seeks profit above all else. She stood courageously in the face of mounting threats, knowing the dangers, and with love in her heart, organized to protect the lands and waters of the Lenca people. We mourn with and call on the international community to take action, to bring justice for Berta and to work to continue her legacy.” – Chung-Wha Hong, Grassroots International
¨A Honduran friend who recognizes his Lenca ancestry called me today and declared: They have killed Lempira again. They killed the person carrying the banner of Indigenous Dignity the Highest, Berta Caceres. Lempira was the Lenca leader killed by the Spanish at the time of conquest. I agree: On March 3, 2016 Lempira Was Killed Again. I mourn for our collective loss and the loss of a beautiful, inspirational sister of supreme struggle.¨ – Stephen Bartlett, Agricultural Missions
“Berta was a tenacious leader. She worked tirelessly to bring indigenous and peasant families into international alliances to contain the greed of international capital for local resources. Above all, Berta was a dear friend and a sister in the struggle for many people in Central America and beyond. The loss of Berta Caceres is now our mística, the energy that will unify us and will sustain our struggle for a more just society.” – Saulo Araujo, WhyHunger
”At Grassroots Global Justice Alliance we are saddened and enraged by the murder of our compañera Berta. She stood up fiercely against her government and trans-national corporations, but always grounded in her love for people and the land. We will continue to live up to the example that she set to fight for land, for life, for dignity, and for happiness! The US government is as much responsible for her death as the people who invaded her home. We will not forget the fights Berta has been engaged in, Let’s channel her strength and her courage to continue her legacy.” – Cindy Wiesner on behalf of Grassroots Global Justice Alliance
“We are deeply saddened by the death of this courageous leader. Her assassination is another horrific example of the violence against environmental activists and the criminalization of people, particularly women and indigenous peoples, around the world who are fighting to protect basic rights to water, land, forests, and life. May Berta’s blood bring strength and determination to her immediate family, comrades, and all of us.” – Terry Odendahl and Nnimmo Bassey, Global Greengrants Fund
“The terrible news of the assassination of Berta Cáceres, internationally recognized human rights defender and Lenca indigenous leader, leaves us shocked and saddened, but determined to continue the fight she so boldly led. She was an inspirational example of how the defense of land and territory, and indigenous and women’s rights, can and must be taken up together. We join the call for an independent investigation and immediate suspension of US security aid that has fomented the militarization and post-coup abandonment of human rights in Honduras.” – Laura Carlsen, CIP Americas Program
The US Food Sovereignty Alliance’s unveils A Preliminary Report on Seeds and Seeds Practices across the USin time for World Food Day and the presentation of the 2014 Food Sovereignty Prizes.
The Alliance wishes to dedicate this publication to Charity Hicks, who joined the ancestors on July 8, 2014, after a valiant fight for life after being struck by a hit-and-run driver in New York City as she was preparing to speak at the Left Forum. Every one of us that knew her will deeply miss her and her powerful voice for justice and inclusion.
The US Food Sovereignty Alliance’s unveils A Preliminary Report on Seeds and Seeds Practices across the USin time for World Food Day and the presentation of the 2014 Food Sovereignty Prizes.
The Alliance wishes to dedicate this publication to Charity Hicks, who joined the ancestors on July 8, 2014, after a valiant fight for life after being struck by a hit-and-run driver in New York City as she was preparing to speak at the Left Forum. Every one of us that knew her will deeply miss her and her powerful voice for justice and inclusion.
