Growing Food is My Form of Protest

“Gardening is the most therapeutic and defiant act you can do. Plus you get strawberries.” – Ron Finley

There are a lot of protests happening all over the word right now, against and in support of all sorts of different issues.

But protesting is about more than taking to the streets with signs and megaphones. It’s about the choices we make in our everyday lives. 

It’s about who (and what) we choose to support with our dollars.

It’s about how we use our voices AND what we say when we speak.

It’s about questioning the system and the status quo, and taking meaningful action to resist the parts that are corrupt and broken. 

From systemic issues that permeate all facets of daily life, to the corporate food system that’s keeping all of us sick and dependent, we can take small but meaningful steps every day to protest against systemic oppression, corporate greed, political corruption and abuses of power in all forms.

I already talk a lot about the importance of self-reliance in this day and age when the vast majority of us are simultaneously reliant on and trapped by this system. And of course when we talk about self-reliance, the first thing that usually comes to mind is growing and raising your own food.

Growing Food is A Form of Protest

You see, homesteading and growing food is my form of protest. At its core, this is my reason for homesteading. It’s the “why” that keeps me going day in and day out, even when it would be easier to just get take out and call it a day (and yes, that does still happen from time to time… I’m only human!)

Every time I talk about the broken food system, that’s a political statement. 

Every time I stress the importance of being self-reliant and “taking your power back,” that’s a political statement.

Growing food is about more than just sustenance. It’s a powerful act of rebellion against the status quo.

It’s also why I’m so passionate about teaching others how to grow, prepare and preserve food too. Because the modern homesteading movement is just that; It’s a movement that’s so much bigger than just me or you. And the more people that pick up a shovel and start planting some seeds, the closer we get to disrupting the system and effecting real, positive change.

This excerpt from an article on medium.com sums it up nicely:

“This is real action, it is very effective, and as it becomes more mainstream to set up gardens in your yard and on your block, we will witness the re-emergence of the kind of society we just cannot create by playing by the rules of a rigged system.”

Overgrow the system, one homegrown vegetable at a time

We’re at a pivotal moment in history right now where everything we do (or don’t do) is a political statement. Homesteading, homeschooling, marching in the streets, speaking up about the issues that plague us, not saying anything at all…

My grandfather used to say that “the air we breathe is political.” So too, then, is the soil we plant in. 

At the end of the day, it’s much easier to just write about how to grow a bumper crop of tomatoes or share my recipe for homemade strawberry jam. But beneath it all is an undercurrent of political activism that’s inseparable from the modern homesteading movement. 

It’s not necessarily about “right” vs. “left” politics though, like we’ve been made to believe. It’s about the people vs. the power; The David vs. The Goliath.

Modern homesteaders come from all sides of the political spectrum, but most of us have this in common: we believe in the core values of freedom, independence, self-reliance and self-determination, and in the importance of growing our own food as a form of personal empowerment.

Every homegrown vegetable; Every jar of home-canned food; Every loaf of homemade bread, even, is a small act of resistance. But those small acts add up, and if enough people join the movement, we’ll eventually hit critical mass. That’s when real change happens.

Make no mistake: growing food is one of the most influential forms of political activism there is, and at its core, that’s what the modern homesteading movement is all about.

What are your thoughts on this topic? I invite you to share them in the comments below.

Wanna learn how to grow your own food?

Let’s face it: food costs are skyrocketing and only continuing to go up. Growing your own food is basically like printing your own money! Not to mention how much healthier and better-tasting it is. And you might be surprised by just how much food you can grow in a relatively small space.

But if you’re new to gardening, it can feel intimidating to get started. I know, because I was once a beginner who had NO CLUE what I was doing—and I made plenty of mistakes that cost me both time and money along the way.

Over the past 10+ years, I’ve learned how to feed my family from our backyard (well… front yard, actually!) on our modest quarter-acre property. Today, I grow hundreds of pounds of food for our family every year for practically free. Yes, there are some startup costs—but they pay big dividends for years to come. Investing in a garden is just about the smartest investment you can make nowadays!

If you’re ready to make that investment in your family’s food security, I’d love to invite you to join me inside my signature program, Seed-to-Soil.

Inside the course, I’ll teach you step-by-step exactly how to grow your own food from seed and create your very own organic grocery store right in your backyard. From choosing the right seeds and starting them successfully, to planting, harvesting, and even saving seeds for the following season, you’ll learn the simple, proven system I’ve used to grow abundant food year after year.

If you’re ready to stop relying entirely on the grocery store and start growing real food for your family, click here to enroll in Seed-to-Soil today.

I can’t wait to see you inside:)