Pick Axe & Shovel Club: Mine For Something, vol. 4 (w/ Bweza)

PASC: Right now, I’m on the phone with an individual, I got the pleasure of meeting not to long ago. And in that short amount of time, we’ve become good friends. Miss Bweza. How are you doing today?

Bweza: Hey, I'm feeling great today. How are you feeling?

PASC: I can’t complain. Excited to talk to you, because we always have some great and insightful conversations. But I want to go back to some of our initial conversation, in which we discussed a business that you own, which is Sistas In The Village Farm in Englewood, Chicago. Could you give me some more background on this and how the farm came about?

Bweza: Yes! I started Sistas In The Village with my business partner and soul sister Mecca Bey in 2020, that’s when we officially started. We were part of a farm training and apprenticeship program through an organization called the Urban Growers Collective. That’s where we learned all the fundamentals of how to grow food, how to start a farming business and how to really grow food on a larger scale.

Then we moved to our permanent site in Englewood, in the Spring of 2022. So, it has been a beautiful journey, the two of us have been on. Connecting more with our roots, connecting with the land and creating a space that is now Sistas In The Village Farm.

PASC: Prior to 2020, did you already have aspirations of owning a farm or did this idea come about around that time?

Bweza: It had always been a distant dream. I didn’t know how it would manifest itself, but I really started thinking about food, land and growing food around 2012. That’s when I started tapping in with some brilliant farmers and black community organizers, who helped me understand the deep connection between us as black people and the land itself. As well as the importance of growing our own food in a way that is healthy, environmentally mindful and that could help alleviate some of the health issues in our community.

At that time, it was just something I was really curious to learn about. So, in my mind, I thought one day I would love to have a farm, but I didn’t know how I would get to that point. Then the pandemic shift everything and presented a really special opportunity for Mecca and I to become a part of that apprenticeship program and make our dreams a reality. Because she also had been dreaming of being a farmer, growing food for years and it just happened perfectly at that moment.

PASC: It seems like the community you all found was very vital in helping materialize those dreams and now you’re repaying by having a farm that feeds the community, which is dope to see how things come full circle.

At this point we’ve done an editorial shoot together, highlighting our Never Fold Perennial Sweater but you’ve been very supportive since day one. From my perspective, I believe it’s because you truly understand the concept behind the declaration “Never Fold, Forever Gold”, the idea of being a modern-day miner.

In your words, what does Gold Regency and “Never Fold, Forever Gold” represent? Does that mean anything to you?

Bweza: First let me say before I even knew the brand, I saw a pair of shades. Which pair was it that I saw?

PASC:  The Elston’s.

Bweza: Yes, the Elston’s! That’s how I was drawn to it. Just the look of it and the feel of it. I thought they were super clean.

PASC: We discussed doing a shoot, right there at that moment. And now a short time later, we were able to make that happen.

Bweza: It was so organic. I was drawn to that piece in particular, then you started telling me about the brand and everything that it represents. That’s when I knew it was connected, and it aligned with my community and the work that I do.

So although I’m new to the brand and still learning it, I think the saying “Never Fold” is such an example of resilience. Within my work as a farmer, resilience is something I have to tap into almost on a daily basis because I’m working with the elements, I’m working outside. So, whether the weather is really rough one day or we have a really hot summer. I must be creative and resilient in figuring out how to maintain the land and continue growing food for the community.

And it’s hard! Just in these few years, we’ve had a lot of ups and downs emotionally, business wise, but we are both just committed to it. We are “Never Folding!

PASC: Never Fold, Forever Gold. I see it.

I really love how you made that connection and how I’ve been able to experience how that kind of resilience can serve a community. It’s amazing when I’m able to meet individuals like you and communities that represent similar ideals and purposes around the world.

I know we’ve been able to connect regarding our experiences from traveling and as a miner, I believe it’s imperative to explore different things about yourself, about the world, and new cultures. How are you able to apply the idea of exploration in your work as a farmer or your day-to-day approach to life?

Bweza: Exploring different parts of the world has been so necessary in helping me see that the work I’m doing and the revolution I’m a part of is a global movement. There are people working the land as a form of protest everywhere in the world.

In a time where we’re used to things moving really fast, we’re used to things being super technological; it’s almost a radical act of protest to slow down and say, I’m going to take the time, plant the seeds by hand and watch this grow to nourish my community. To be able to see that in Chicago, in Uganda, and even Barcelona and Paris. To see people who are actively resisting and understanding that our connection to the land as humans is what makes us fully whole, is so inspiring.

I have to stay on this path because it’s not me alone by myself but it’s a global effort. Sometimes when I focus on the micro level, my day-to-day life, my community, it gets heavy and it feels like a lot of weight to carry, this is a lot of work to do. All the food I’m growing on this big, but still small sized farm is not going to have the reach that I may want it to have but when I zoom out, I realize I’m just a piece of a tapestry and piece of a bigger puzzle. We all have to do our part, grow food for our communities, so we can be well.

PASC: Mining responsibly, is what that sounds like.

Bweza: Sounds like you have to Mine Responsibly, exactly!

PASC: Ha, I love it! Could you give us a quick rundown of where we can find Sistas In The Village?

Bweza: Sistas In The Village Farm, is located in the Englewood community of Chicago. We are at the corner of 58^th & Ada. You can also find us on IG @SistasInTheVillage and we do have a website as well, sistasinthevillage.com.

For people who are local to Chicago, we always have volunteer opportunities. We love for people to pull up and just connect with us on the land. Or if you’re not local to Chicago, just stay connected with us on Instagram; you can donate and support in a lot of other ways too!

PASC: One time for Mecca!

Bweza: Shout out to Mecca! I could not do this without her and I would never want to.

PASC: And Basil!

*(Basil is one of nicest the farm cats you’ll ever meet, and she’s at Sistas In The Village)

Bweza: And Basil! And Sweet Potato! And Tomato!