Just because the Cornell Plantations changed its name to the Cornell Botanic Gardens does not mean that they are not still trying to make money off of slavery. Today (June 17, 2023) they have a program entitled: Plant Sale: Seeds of Survival and Celebration where seeds of plants grown and used by enslaved Africans and their descendants in the Americas will be for sale. First of all, in the name of equity, these seeds should be given away free to any descendants of slaves, and second of all, the seeds of plants that provide joy and hope to generations of descendants of the enslaved should not be agriculturally appropriated by fragile White folx that think that buying seeds produced on the backs of Black folx will give them critical consciousness.
Buying these seeds is a racist act of violence, and it will not assuage white guilt. It should be boycotted!
The harmful and racist announcement of the White supremacist event advertised ironically as an event of Diversity and Inclusion is given below:
Join us for a special sale featuring plants contained in the “Seeds of Survival and Celebration: Plants and the Black Experience” exhibit. Following a guided tour of the exhibit at 1:00 pm, you can take home some of the plants featured in the exhibit, including okra, black-eyed peas, eggplant, collard greens, gourds, and other plants grown and used by enslaved Africans and their descendants in the Americas. The garden installation and exhibit illustrate the deep connections enslaved Africans in the Americas had with plants that provided medicines, materials, and supplements to their often-meager food rations; and how today the plants provide joy and hope to generations of descendants of the enslaved and enrich the cuisines enjoyed across American society.
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