The Black Feminist Project: Where Radical Joy and Resistance Meet

In the Bronx, a woman named Tanya Denise Fields is helping to improve quality of life for low-income Black mothers/alternate gender parents and their children. She is the founder and executive director of the Black Feminist Project, where radical joy meets radical resistance! Tanya aims to provide communities of color what they need: food and community support, so they can lead fulfilling and enjoyable existences. With her work, she hopes to nourish and empower families using economic and community projects that are designed to address the food and reproductive injustices that seriously impact the BIPOC community’s overall wellness. What started off in 2006 as a systematic Guerrilla effort to seed empty lots throughout the city with edible plants like sunflowers eventually resulted in her acquisition of an abandoned property that has since been designated as an official city green space. This plot of land was previously the site of a long-since removed building, dead and devoid of any life, beauty, or purpose, but thanks to Tanya, community members can use the 5,400 square foot Black Joy Farm in the Bronx, New York City to grow their gardening skills and cultivate an abundance of fruits and vegetables, as well as raise chickens. And this delicious and nutritious food is redistributed to the community. Tanya said it best herself: “It doesn’t get more farm to table than that!”

Besides the garden, Tanya also has a space at the Alice Fields Community Center, aptly named for the Black education activist that was known for her efforts to improve her community in the 1940s. This location is used for food preparation and the distribution of other free goods like clothing and supplies for community members in need! The Black Feminist Project also empowers women in their community with a series of talks and workshops called Sis, Do You! These seminars for Black Womxn use conversation, art and shared wisdom to heal and restore the Black female community. Many of these sessions focus on developing positive skills that can then be used to transform their own lives and better their communities every day. The incredible tenacity and compassion of one woman has changed (and continues to change) the world for so many more! 

Follow and support The Black Feminist Project: Website – Facebook – Instagram – Twitter

Thank you to Guerrilla Foundation for funding this video of solutions.

This article was written by Sydney Lindquist.