• Listen to this show

South Central Farm, Fair Trade, and the Color of Wealth

GUEST: Tezozomoc, elected representative of the South Central Farmers

It was just a week ago today that farmers and their supporters were forcibly evicted off the 14 acre community garden by LA police and sheriffs. Despite months of negotiations with the developer, Ralph Horowitz to buy the land, the farmers have now been separated from their plots of land. Bulldozers have destroyed parts of the farm and there have been nightly vigils outside the farm.

There are nightly vigils at 7 pm in front of the farm at 41st Street and Alameda. For more information, visit www.southcentralfarmers.org.

GUEST: Eric Clark, Board President of Ten Thousand Villages

Ten Thousand Villages recently opened in Pasadena at 496 South Lake Avenue
Pasadena, CA 91101. For more information, call 626-229-9892 or visit www.tenthousandvillages.com.

GUEST: Meizhu Lui, the Executive Director of United for a Fair Economy, and the lead author of The Color of Wealth: The Story Behind the US Racial Divide

For every dollar owned by the average white family in the United States, the average family of color has less than a dime. The United States has always had a serious racial wealth gap. Now, five researchers from the group, United for a Fair Economy, have tried to answer the question, “why do people of color have so little wealth?” They’ve co-written a book called The Color of Wealth: The Story Behind the US Racial Divide,” in which they lay out how for centuries, people of color have been barred by laws and by discrimination from participating in government wealth-building programs that benefit white Americans. The book examines the histories of five major racial groups in the US: Native Americans, Latino Americans, African Americans, Asian Americans, and European Americans. It is the first book to demonstrate the decisive influence of government policies on Americans’ net worth. “The Color of Wealth” also make the case that until government policy tackles disparities in wealth, not just income, the United States will never have racial or economic justice.

For more information, visit www.faireconomy.org