Farming and Feminism: Gender Dynamics in the Jewish Community Farming Movement

• In Event: Relational Identity: The Formation and Expression of Raced and Gendered Modern North American Jewish Identity

Abstract

The Jewish Community Farming (JCF) movement is grounded in an ethic of environmentalism and social justice but gender imbalances and other gender-based issues persist within the movement. I utilize ethnographic interviews and participant observation at all of the JCF organizations to explore the gender dynamics at the individual farms to consider the presence of gender inequities in the movement. Fifteen organizations form the core of the Jewish community farming movement. Many of the fellowships and training programs these organizations run are comprised primarily of women and non-binary persons. However, men lead eleven of these fifteen organizations. Beyond inequities in access to leadership, the women-led organizations have developed around different goals and this further distinguishes their organizations from those run by men. I pay careful attention here to the JCF organizations led by women, including Shoresh Jewish Environmental Programs in Toronto, Canada and Milk and Honey Farm in Boulder, CO to discuss the distinctive approaches the woman-led farms take to leadership, land ownership and usage, and work with non-human animals. The woman-led organizations prioritize sustainability and community engagement over land ownership and use. Two of the four woman-led organizations don’t own any land at all. Ganei Beantown in Boston and Netiya in Los Angeles are both community focused and do their educational and social justice programming in varied spaces throughout the urban areas that they serve. Relatedly, Shoresh acknowledges that the land their farm occupies once belonged to various First Nations tribes and that it was taken from them. The women-led farms also tend to prioritize work with non-human animals. At Milk and Honey Farm in Boulder, Becca has dedicated a significant portion of their land and labor resources of the farm to goats, chickens, and honeybees. At Shoresh, they had dedicated a significant amount of time and resources to bees. I also discuss the work that movement leaders are doing to incorporate feminism into their individual and collective visions in a continued effort to move North American Jews toward a more equitable and sustainable future.

Author

• Adrienne M Krone, Allegheny College