Summary: African American culinary historian Michael W. Twitty interviewed by Gerri Williams on black crops, climate change, & safe seeds. K. Rashid Nuri from Truly Living Well urban farm in Atlanta, Georgia. Music by Mavis Staples ("Down in Mississippi") & Memphis Gold ("Mississippi Flatlands"). Radio Ecoshock 1 hour 130220 DOWNLOAD THESE FREE MP3 AUDIO FILES: All I ask, please help when you can, with a donation or subscription to Radio Ecoshock. The helps pay not just for production, but the tens of thousands of free downloads each month, getting the message out all over the world. Find out more here. Radio Ecoshock Show "Survival Soul Food" in CD Quality (56 MB) or Lo-Fi (14 MB) Gerri Williams interviews Michael W. Twitty 26 minutes in CD Quality (24 MB) or Lo-Fi (6 MB) Alex Smith interviews Rashid Nuri (24 minutes) in CD Quality (22 MB) or Lo-Fi (6 MB) This is Black History Month in the United States. It started me thinking about justice, for people and the environment. We open the program with the song "Down in Mississippi". It is Mavis Staples, singing about her own life, from the album "We'll Never Turn Back". The song includes the guitar-work of producer Ry Cooder. You'll hear the whole thing at the end of this program. We also play a selection from "Mississippi Flatlands" by artist Memphis Gold. He's from Tennessee, but is now living in Washington D.C. I really appreciate his style. The song is from the album "Pickin' in High Cotton" on Stackhouse Records. Can we learn from the earliest agricultural workers? Are there Southern crops and techniques that we'll need as climate change develops? Yes on all counts. This dig into an unreported scene will work for listeners in every country. We've got two fabulous guides. Michael W. Twitty is a culinary historian of African and African American foodways. He's just returned from a tour of the former slave states, living and recording those important self-sufficient ways of growing and cooking food, from seeds through open fire cooking. Our Washington correspondent Gerri Williams, with her own expertise at the College of Agriculture, sits down with Michael Twitty. Then it's off to Atlanta George with another remarkable mind. I talk with K. Rashid Nuri about everything from the decline of black farming, to the revival of urban agriculture and organic growing. We can't do better than Rashid. He's a Harvard Grad who worked for decades in the international food industry, all over the world. Nuri was an adviser to the US Department of Agriculture in the Clinton Administration. Now he's come full circle to head up the Truly Living Well urban farm operation in Atlanta, and the Georgia Organic Farmers movement. Get ready to learn about adapting to climate change, protecting your own food health, southern living, and the struggle for economic justice. This is Radio Ecoshock. AFRICAN AMERICAN CULINARY HISTORIAN MICHAEL W. TWITTY Michael Twitty When the African American Heritage Seed Collection was begun, organizers turned to culinary historian Michael W. Twitty. Michael has just returned from a tour of the former slave states in the American South. He was seeking his roots - and cooking them! Michael recently met up with Radio Ecoshock Washington correspondent Gerri Williams. As a Research Associate at the College of Agriculture, Urban Sustainability & Environmental Science at the University of D. C., Gerri is tuned into African American culture, food production, and the environment. Gerri Williams I'm betting you don't know about "slave gardens", or the two foods that may move from the bird feeder to your dinner plate, as climate change develops. Gerri begins by asking Michael Witty about his well-named "Southern Discomfort" tour. I found this whole interview fascinating and useful. We pick up tips about adapting to climate change, the importance of natural food, and the crops that you might want to discover. Michael's histories of African American foodways have been published all over, includin
