Joana Amorim of Permaculture Action Network and team painting boarded houses.
On November 15th, 2018, as the first snowflakes of the season drifted to the ground, friends and organizers of Permaculture Action Network and Rising Appalachia gathered for an Action Day at the Peace Campus with the iGrow Chicago community.
iGrow Chicago is located in the South Side of Chicago at the intersection of W 64th Street and S Honore St. The mission of iGrow Chicago is to grow Englewood from surviving to thriving through community connection, skill building, and opportunity. Their slogan is #healingthehood.
“On what was previously one of the most violent blocks in Englewood, iGrow Chicago is planting the seeds of change and igniting collective hope and healing. By transforming abandoned homes and vacant lots into community-led resources, we are building skills, fostering connection, and promoting a safe and thriving community,” according to iGrowChicago.org.
In classic Action Day style, the morning opened with a group circle filled with introductions to community members, projects, project leads, and gratitude, song and mindfulness practices led by iGrow Director of Community Engagement, Peace Coleman.
Projects for the day included insulating and winterizing a coop for the “Chicks for Justice” chickens, hanging “Lights of Belonging” LED strands up stairways and railings and around the doorways of community elders’ homes, working in iGrow’s urban farm with lead gardener Erica Thronton to improve cold weather gardening systems, and painting inspirational images and messages on boards covering up windows and doors of abandoned homes in the neighborhood.
Leah Song and friend with iGrow’s “Chicks for Justice”
“The most beneficial project to me was painting the boarded up doors and windows. The project boosted community moral and we have neighbors from other blocks asking us to come paint on their street,” said Erin Vogel, Co-Executive Director of iGrow. “One of our kids said that he was proud to live on the 6400 block of South Honore. He loves walking down the block to go to school and seeing all of the beautiful artwork we created.”
Painter’s Creation
Rolling workshops and group activities took place inside the Peace House throughout the day. Such offerings included a splendidly aromatic herbal wreath workshop with Megan Musschoot, Garden, Art, Sound and Drum workshops with Consensus, a Reimagining Justice Workshop: Restorative Practice w/ Communities to confront systems of power and provide solutions for intra-communal and state violence w/ Alternatives.
“Restorative justice practices work to bring the broadest definition of community together to heal and connect. Through monthly peace circles and community dinners, we see each other as what we really are — humans. Finding common ground and doing critical work together heals community wounds and creates opportunities for collective action,” an iGrow Staff member wrote.
Restorative Justice Circle at iGrow
The latter half of the day was filled with musical engagement including a performance by Altruin, a drum circle with Biko Casini, and The Miseducation of Hip-Hop with Mother Nature Barz.
iGrow community youth drumming during the action day
This community event was one of snow and laughter, warmth and creativity, vulnerability and strength, friendship and increased resilience. In addition to those already mentioned, we at Permaculture Action Network would like to share a big thank you for all community members and attendees that came out, the elders, the youth and everyone in between. Big thanks to Chef Mel and Nori for filling the Peace House with mouth-watering smells and for filling our bellies with nourishment so that we could keep effectively building and learning together, to Robbin Carroll for initiating the Peace House and providing an incredible demonstration of the power of community, and to Quentin Mables and Erin Vogel for bringing the fun, for having all the answers to our questions and for welcoming us so warmly.
For the full photo album from the day, visit https://www.facebook.com/pg/permacultureaction/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1334485753367612
Written by Hillary Walton, member of the Great Lakes BioRegional Crew of Permaculture Action Network
Photos taken by Syd Woodward of Guayaki’s Come To Life Media Team, Alexa Levy, iGrow Team, and Alycia Grace of This is Perfect Harmony LLC
Read the article on our second Chicago Permaculture Action Day on the Solidarity Tour coming soon!
