Please join us – and thousands of others from across the U.S. — at the Movement for Black Lives National Convening in Cleveland, OH.

In addition to attending the conference session, Mistinguette Smith and Tavia Benjamin will present our workshop on Black/Land in Cleveland.

This workshop is NOT about urban agriculture! This workshop is for any black Clevelander who has ever owned a home in Glenville; loved a neighborhood on the West Side; tilled a garden in a backyard in East Cleveland; skateboarded across the Mall downtown; or fished in Lake Erie.

This interactive workshop begins with a short look at the unique history of black people’s relationships to land in Cleveland’s history :

Did you know that the first black Clevelander was a well-to-do landowner?

Which black Cleveland suburb has a micro-climate uniquely suited for orchards?

When did Cleveland’s business and residential neighborhoods become racially segregated?

Then, we will  discuss and map out how we would like to see land in our communities used in the future. These rich conversations weave together people who might otherwise not have met, and generate new ideas for how we can construct relationships to land and place.

Whether you attend our workshop, or have a conversation with us over lunch, we can’t wait to see you there!