Systemic racism is a pervasive issue in the United States. “Young black men are unfairly discriminated against because they are portrayed as being criminals, threatening, or hostile,” Quilen Blackwell says. “What many people don’t see is that they are human just like you and me.” He recognised how prejudice obstructs their path forward while tutoring at-risk high school students. So Blackwell set out to improve the chances of success for black youth through an unusual field – flowers.
Blackwell is the founder of Southside Blooms, an organisation which uses sustainable flower farming and floristry to provide black men with a safe space to grow. Many of the attendees are freshly out of the justice system, and are vulnerable as they restart their lives. In the South Side area of Chicago, where poverty, crime, and unemployment are rife, this initiative is steering youth away from negative influences. The programme turns vacant community spaces into flower farms which run on solar power and harvested rainwater. Here, at-risk individuals learn how to work with the plants and soil. Once they’ve passed this stage, they can get a professional job as a florist at Southside Blooms. “By creating opportunities for them, they can now put their talents on a stage that benefits not just them and their families, but their communities, the city, and really all the world,” Blackwell says.
In the United States, 75% of flowers are imported, which contributes to carbon emissions. Keeping the farms close to florists, Blackwell’s project is beneficial to both people and the Earth. “Sustainable agriculture is providing the opportunity for us to close historic socio-economic gaps while also healing the planet itself,” Blackwell says. His organisation is turning the inner city into land that’s fertile for change, and sowing a healthy future for young men.
Footage and photos by Southside Blooms were used in the creation of this film.
