Shabe Yalda: Solstice & Solidarity
Shabe Yalda: A Celebration of the Winter Solstice in Solidarity with the Women & Revolution in Iran
Light dinner served. Music – Poetry – Open Mic. Free to the public.
Shabe Yalda: A Celebration of the Winter Solstice in Solidarity with the Women & Revolution in Iran
Light dinner served. Music – Poetry – Open Mic. Free to the public.
Leah Penniman (Li*/Ya/She/He) is a Black Kreyol educator, farmer/peyizan, author, and food justice activist from Soul Fire Farm in Grafton, NY. Li has over 20 years of experience as a soil steward and food sovereignty activist, having worked at the Food Project, Farm School, Many Hands Organic Farm, Youth Grow and with farmers internationally in Ghana, Haiti, and Mexico.
Leah co-founded Soul Fire Farm in 2010 with the mission to reclaim our inherent right to belong to the earth and have agency in the food system as Black and Brown people. As co-Executive Director, Li is part of a team that facilitates powerful food sovereignty programs – including farmer trainings for Black & Brown people, a subsidized farm food distribution program for people living under food apartheid, and domestic and international organizing toward equity in the food system. Her areas of leadership at Soul Fire include farmer training, international solidarity, perennials, writing, speaking, “making it rain,” and anything that involves heavy lifting, sweat, and soil. Li’s book “Farming While Black” is a love song for the earth and her peoples.
Leah holds an MA in Science Education and BA in Environmental Science and International Development from Clark University, and is a Manye (Queen Mother) in Vodun. Leah has been farming since 1996 and teaching since 2002. The work of Leah and Soul Fire Farm has been recognized by the Soros Racial Justice Fellowship, Fulbright Program, Omega Sustainability Leadership Award, Presidential Award for Science Teaching, NYS Health Emerging Innovator Awards, and Andrew Goodman Foundation, among others. Her book, Farming While Black: Soul Fire Farm’s Practical Guide is a love song to the land and her people.
We’re honored to offer the following awards at the Western New York Peace Center’s 55th Annual Dinner:
We are excited to announce that this event will be catered by Sunshine Vegan Eats.
Served buffet-style. All sides are vegan and will be available with either protein choice (baked chicken OR vegan meatloaf): collard greens, mac and “cheese”, string beans, and artisan bread. Dessert will be peach cobbler.