The annual Farm Aid concert was held in Camden, NJ on September 30th and your intrepid Indie Fixx writer was there. The day was long, we got rained on, and Neil Young (my favorite) only played four songs, but it was still the best fun I’ve had in a long time. I was on my feet almost the entire evening! The highlights included the Los Lonely Boys set—they were seriously good live and were even joined on stage by Willie Nelson who they called their yoda. Jerry Lee Lewis is still rockin’ at 71 and he played an awesome set that had everyone on their feet. John Mellencamp was also surprisingly entertaining. What can I say, I am not a big John Mellencamp fan, but he is actually quite amazing live. His band is tight and his extended groove of the “Authority Song” was incredible.
Check out my flikr photos…
Official Farm Aid concert photos…
Although the day was about the entertainment, behind the fun are the larger issues facing farmers today. When Farm Aid was first founded in 1985, the biggest threat farmers were facing were unprecedented farm foreclosures due to unfair federal policies. Today the issues may be different, but the need for Farm Aid and other grass roots work is still there. The biggest threats facing farmers today are domestic policies that set market prices to benefit big agri-corpoarations and which set up small farmers to fail, international policies and trade agreements which again favor large corporations and not small farmers, and a system of mass-production and industrialization that makes it hard for small farmers to compete against factory farms.
Why should you care about small farmers? Small farms are more environmentally conscious than big factory farms and produce better quality food. Small farmers care about the land they farm—it’s generally been in their family for generations, they live on the land they farm, and they just can’t pick up and relocate if they ruin the land like big factory farms can and do. If you care about the quality of your food, small farmers are the way to go for safe, fresh, locally grown food. Additionally, small farmers embody the very spirit of our country—corporations only care about the bottom line—small farmers have more of a stake in their communities, the county and the world. Small business people of all types are being forced out my large corporations and if we value the little guy, we should support small business people—the local mechanic, the corner newsstand, the small independent artisan and the local small farmer alike.
How can you make a difference? The main difference you can make is to think about the purchases you make and the effects that they may have on our world and its citizens. Question why your grocery store is carrying tomatoes with a sticker on them from half way across the world when you know there is a local farm growing tomatoes. Shop from farmers markets, roadside fruit stands, CSAs, food co-ops, and other sources that will carry fresh, local produce. Hold your elected leaders responsible and demand that they stop passing legislation that favors large agribusinesses and which hurts small farmers. Make sure to support indie and shop from small, local, and independent businesses for all your shopping needs.
OH I caught that! I was just wondering what, like you just explained, was emphasized at the concert. I wish they would be more verbose about the cause. It’s great they are raising money but how about raising more awareness?
I was actually a little disappointed at the lack of information at the concert. It seemed the focus was really on the entertainment. Besides the big headliners talking a bit before and during their sets, there wasn’t much emphasis put on the reasons for the concert. During his set, Neil Young stressed consumer education and said, “Teach your children about shopping for vegetables.” While Dave Matthews focused more on corporate greed and the government supporting big business. At a tirade about factory farms, he said, “You can’t eat money.”
A couple of people saw my press badge and decided to share their disappointment with me about the lack of focus on the threats facing farmers today. They too were concerned that there was not more information available at the concert.
If you check out my post beyond the cut (just click continued) I do offer some info about the threats facing farmers as well as what people can do to make a difference.
So did you get to talk to anyone? Ask any questions? What was going on (in terms of education) besides the music?