Food Injustice in the City of Syracuse

Syracuse, as of 2018, was ranked the ninth poorest city in America. In the

1960s, Syracuse had been ranked as the seventy-ninth poorest city in America. Yet every ten years, this ranking began to creep higher and higher, cutting in half each time. Eventually, Syracuse hit a poverty rate of about 32.4% as of 2017.

The economic downturn of the city stems from the loss of financially beneficial industries in the region during the second half of the 20th century. Syracuse had once been home to major manufacturing companies, such as Carrier, which produced air conditioners, as well as Syracuse China, the first major American-based pottery manufacturer. However, during the mid-2000s recession, companies were forced to leave the region. The companies that employed many Syracuse residents attributed their departure to the global market forces that caused them to revert to outsourcing cheaper production in foreign countries Hundreds of jobs were lost and many residents soon fell below the poverty line. Syracuse quickly spiraled into division and increasing poverty.

While surface level economic issues greatly influence the poverty levels in Syracuse, there are also more deeply rooted issues that exist. Where Upstate Medical University and the I-81 highway lie today was once a historically black neighborhood called the 15th Ward. The neighborhood housed many African American, Hispanic, and Jewish residents of the city. It was also home to many black-owned businesses and restaurants. The neighborhood was redlined in the 1930s by the government, outlining it as an area that wasn’t deemed profitable due to the populations that lived there. This information was used in planning the future building of a highway that would run through the city to connect the downtown with the suburbs. Eventually I-81 was built in the 1950s, during a time of systemic racism. Government officials decided to demolish the 15th Ward neighborhood to make way for the interstate, leading to social and racial divide in the city for years to come.

A consequence of this widespread poverty throughout the city is food insecurity. Food insecurity is broadly defined as “a lack of consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy lifestyle.” Food insecurity may mean that a family struggles to put meals on the table a few nights a week or it may result in someone not knowing where their next meal comes from. In Upstate New York, one-sixth of the population is considered to be food insecure. A scary reality is that there is no single face to the issue of food insecurity-- it can affect anyone.

Many residents in the Syracuse area are especially vulnerable to not having enough food because some neighborhoods, especially those on the South Side, are considered food deserts. In food deserts, residents have little or no access to grocery stores that provide healthy and affordable food. Instead, there are small convenience and corner stores that act as the only option for daily food provisions. When you leave the Syracuse University’s campus and travel underneath I-81 to the South Side you are transported into a region defined as a food dessert. Access to equal food can change in less than a mile.

While the federal government has programs in place to aid those suffering from food insecurity, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, SNAP, and The Emergency Food Assistance Program, TEFAP, these are often not enough. Many organizations have formed in the area to provide further aid to the residents of our city. One of the most active organizations in the Syracuse area is called We Rise Above the Streets, led by Alamin Abdullah Muhammad. Alamin formed the idea for We Rise Above the Streets as he sat in prison. He had long struggled to find purpose in his life, leading him to turn to drugs and gang violence as he struggled with homelessness for many years. Yet one day, something clicked: his purpose was to change the lives of others who had experienced similar hardships. When released from prison, Alamin ended up back on the streets again and was homeless for a number of years. He was saved by his parole officer, who helped him get a certification to start a nonprofit. Eventually Alamin made his way to Syracuse, where he began We Rise Above the Streets three years ago, with all initial funding coming out of his own pocket.

Alamin has profoundly impacted the City of Syracuse as well as the many homeless individuals living here. He began We Rise Above the Streets particularly in Syracuse because he saw a great need for help in the area and many residents rallied behind his purpose. Alamin’s motivation behind the grassroots organization is that he never wants anyone to suffer the way he did. In his mind, We Rise Above the Streets has the ability to “give people a voice and improve their quality of life.”

I, and other members of the Baked Magazine staff, got to see the impact of We Rise Above the Streets first hand at a Sandwich Saturday event. Over a hundred residents and university students from the greater Syracuse area met to make hundreds of sandwiches for the impoverished and homeless in the city. Sandwich Saturdays happen every Saturday morning, however, Alamin runs a number of other programs such as self-sufficient classes to help people get back on their feet after leaving prison or overcoming homelessness.

When we arrived, we were put to work with rubber gloves. We talked with other volunteers while furiously making hundreds of turkey and cheese sandwiches. Many of the other volunteers told us how they had heard about Alamin’s organization over Facebook and wanted to help. At a point, one woman cried softly while describing what it felt like to give the food to those in need. At that moment, we all knew what we were doing was bigger than ourselves. We finished our assembly line by making small handwritten notes to those who would receive the meals. Messages such as “You are beautiful and worth it!” and “Have a great and peaceful day!” were written in crayon on craft paper with glitter stickers.

As volunteers finished packaging the meals, Alamin gathered us all in a circle. He told us his story of what it was like to be in prison and homeless on the streets for so many years, and how he struggled to see himself as a worthy individual. He explained that it only took one person to see him just as a human, rather than a person defined by homelessness, in order to gain his confidence. Alamin instilled in us the idea that we must look at the homeless just as people, with a smile on our face and a “happy to be there” attitude. As we prepared to leave to hand out meals, we chanted We Rise Above the Streets’ empowering message: “If we eat, they eat.” This saying has become central to the organization and the #weeattheyeat social media campaign.

Alamin believes that there is true “power in community,” and everyone in the room that morning certainly felt that power.

We then traveled to an area of the city on the edge of the downtown district to hand out the meals. Food, clothes, and toiletries were laid out buffet style, allowing anyone who needed something to get it. With each meal we handed out, we received the warmest smiles and thank you’s.

Food creates a unifying bond between people. No matter what we all look like or where we come from, we all need to eat. Yet, not all of us have access to it. This is where things must begin to change.

But where can you start and contribute? Alamin’s best advice is to start by building community. By bringing people together there is more momentum to take action. Additionally, a community of people can help to educate one another. Alamin sees that “it’s a mindset we have been raised on” that

perpetuates the lack of empathy towards certain communities such as the homeless. To change this we must see homeless people simply as humans.

Access to equal food can change in less than a mile."

There is power in “putting everything in action, instead of too much talking” Alamin believes. I, along with the other member of our staff, saw the power of people coming together and getting to work. You don’t need an army to feed people, you just need a community of passionate people. It takes a few people stepping up to make sure that no one goes hungry. As Alamin says: if we eat, they eat.