Episode 237: Food Dignity and the Power of Land Ownership
About the Podcast
In this episode, Clancy speaks with Dr. Veronica L. Womack, Executive Director of the Rural Studies Institute at Georgia College and Professor of Political Science and Public Administration. A scholar, advocate, and storyteller of the Southern Black Belt, Dr. Womack shares why rural communities, land, and foodways matter deeply, not just to the South, but to the health and dignity of the entire country.
About Dr. Veronica L. Womack
Dr. Veronica L. Womack is the inaugural Executive Director of the Rural Studies Institute at Georgia College and a professor of Political Science and Public Administration. Raised in the Alabama Black Belt and now working throughout the Georgia Black Belt, her scholarship and practice center on rural communities, agriculture, food systems, and the cultural and political life of the American South. She is also the founder of the Black Farmers Network and a leading voice documenting the history, complexity, and resilience of Black farmers and rural people.
Discussion Takeaways
- Rural communities are often misunderstood or overlooked in policy and education spaces. To value the community, it is essential to understand the people and their traditions.
- Food has long been used as a source of power for marginalized communities. The ability to grow your own food, decide how it is prepared, and gather a community around it is a form of leadership.
- Land ownership is central to this power. When people are denied access to land, they are denied economic opportunity, autonomy, and long-term security.
- Land is not just symbolic; it is collateral, livelihood, and the foundation of rural economies.
- Food dignity is a fair system. A system that honors farmers’ right to grow what they choose, earn a living wage, and care for the land, while also ensuring that every person has access to affordable, healthy food that nourishes body, mind, and spirit.
- Storytelling became a tool to move people toward food dignity. People must understand how today’s food system came to be, why food tastes differently, why access to land has changed, and how rural and urban lives are deeply interconnected.
#1 tip to improve access to healthy food
Food dignity is a fair system. A system that honors farmers’ right to grow what they choose, earn a living wage, and care for the land, while also ensuring that every person has access to affordable, healthy food that nourishes body, mind, and spirit.
Each week on the Food Dignity® Podcast, the Food Dignity® Movement's Clancy Harrison hosts a wide variety of hunger experts and other people making changes on the frontlines. Join us as we dive deep into conversations that will change the way you think about food insecurity.
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