I’m ready for a new series of films
Gardenator
Community
Garden Cop
Total
Recycle
ACGA needs
to start a screenplay committee.
JH
-----Original
Message-----
From:
community_garden-admin@mallorn.com [mailto:community_garden-admin@mallorn.com]On Behalf Of Adam36055@aol.com
Sent: Wednesday, October 08, 2003
3:04 PM
To: community_garden@mallorn.com
Cc: SDHC@aol.com
Subject: [cg] Governor Arnold and
Community Gardens?
Friends,
When interesting events like the California Gubenatorial election occur, the
first question community gardeners should ask (after picking themselves off the
floor, in either glee or shock) is, "Is this good for community gardeners?"
My feeling is that the volunteer energy, work by local residents in fighting
hunger and the self-reliant ethos of community gardening should be attractive
to those on the right as well as those, like me, who are liberal, yellow-dog
Democrats.
A tour of a tidy and productive California community garden that produces food
for low income residents on a volunteer basis (at little or no cost to the
State of California) would be a great photo-op for the new governor, at the
very least, and might actually get his support as a kind of self-reliance
project. A point of light. And being in some ways a social
progressive (or a conservative of a pramatic nature) the concept of community
gardens might get support from governor-elect Schwartzeneger in a way that
other food security efforts might not.
Looking for cultural contexts: While a quick search of the web didn't get me
the Austrian allotment garden organization link, allotment gardens,
"kleingartens", or recreation gardens, exist around Vienna and other
Austrian cities. Often, and interestingly, many of the folks (though
certainly not all) engaged in this pursuit in the German speaking countries can
be quite conservative in their politics. I mention this because it might give a
context for those Californian community gardeners who might wish to reach out
to the new governor directly, might want to be aware of.
Community gardens do not require heavy governmental support and do much good
for their neighborhoods. And if more hungry get fed at low cost, it might
be the kind evidence of good governance that this new California State
administration might find attractive.
Of course all politics is local, and Californians in Sacramento, San Francisco,
San Diego and other urban areas where Community Gardens are currently being
run, would have to decide on the strategies and approaches they want to follow.
What can Governor Schwartzeneger say? No? But it would be interesting if
our community gardens pique his interest.
Best wishes,
Adam Honigman
Volunteer,
Clinton Community Garden
