March Against Monsanto, October 12, 2013, Bryant Park
Photo: Stacy Lanyon
I had been working as a chef in New York City. I was laid-off during
the initial occupation. I saw people were down at Zuccotti Park, so I decided
to go down and see what was going on. That was two weeks after the occupation
started. I found a kitchen down there, and I figured that I could help out and
wash some dishes and maybe serve some food. We ended up getting a space to
cook, and I ended up staying down there and cooking for a lot of occupiers for
a few months. The energy in the park was great. Everybody was really excited.
We all had so many great ideas and such passion. It was really fun. There were
also some really tense moments with the police. We just made the best of the
situation with what we had. We tried to spread awareness and get more people to
join. The police and other factors got in the way of that, and obviously we’re at the
point now where we no longer have Zuccotti Park. The occupation has made a
shift, and some people have taken several different roles in smaller movements.
I'm the “Fuck Monsanto” guy. When we were at the park, there were a lot of
really tense moments, and I hate Monsanto so much. Whenever I felt a little
stressed or a tense moment, I’d scream out “FUCK MONSANTO.” Somehow that caught
on like wildfire, and it’s become a real part of the movement. You know, it’s
a little harsh, but what they are doing is a little harsh. It’s really straight
and to the point, and it’s a lot of fun to say. Now, I’m just working to keep
this movement against Monsanto going. Doing that is so important for us and for future generations because
the ownership of food is not something that we can give into the hands of
corporations. The way our food is distributed is not sustainable. The way it’s
grown is not sustainable.
There’s been very little studies on the effects Monsanto’s products has on humans or the environment because
it hasn't been very long since these techniques have been introduced, and most of the studies
that have been done were done by Monsanto. Some of the smaller studies do show
that there is a potential risk to the environment and to human beings in eating
this food that is being genetically altered by its DNA. There’s so much about
Monsanto to say. One of the larger issues that’s really important as well is
the process of putting small farmers out of business and the idea of suicide
seeds, which is a seed that is genetically altered to not produce more seeds,
which means that the farmer is forever in debt to buying more seeds and more
pesticides in order to grow the seeds from Monsanto—a giant corporation.
This is
important on so many levels. It’s something that really needs to be addressed.
We need to be talking about it, at least, and I don’t think people are really
talking about this. It’s just pushed under the rug, and we’re just fed this
food without us knowing what’s in it, how it’s produced, how it’s distributed
or its effects. Fuck Monsanto! We have a government that’s gone corrupt, and
money is a driving force for greed, and that’s something we have to come to
terms with as human beings. Do we want to live this way and destroy nature and
our planet and ourselves because of a dollar bill? To me, it’s pretty silly. It’s
just paper. I wish people would get off their asses.
I hope to bring about a world without Monsanto,
a world where we live in harmony with nature, with our surroundings, with our planet, with ourselves. I'd like to see a world where there isn’t this greed and this idea of ownership. Something
different is really what I’m looking for. I think we’ve gone through this stage
for long enough, and this stage is not sustainable, so something different has
to come about. Whatever that is, I’m not sure. I’m not really sure how to
attain that goal. I hope from the lessons we’ve learned that it will be a
beautiful place where people can share ideas and share food and share love. I
think once we come together, we can accomplish so much. Two heads are better
than one, and seven billion is better than ten. If we can come together as a
whole and work on issues together, we can tackle most of these issues that are
troubling this world without fighting each other. We need to work together, and
I think if we do that, it would be a great place. I think we can tackle
poverty. I think we can tackle a lot of issues that are affecting us right now.
I just hope to see that day soon. Fuck Monsanto!
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