OFMA’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) Statement
As of October 6, 2020
The intention of this statement is to guide OFMA decisions, actions, advocacy and allocation of resources as we work toward becoming an anti-racist organization. Farmers markets are part of an agricultural system based in a history of racism and oppression, from the theft of Indigenous land by white European colonizers, to centuries of stolen labor through slavery, and continued exploitation of Latinx farmworkers and other workers of color across the food system.
Oregon’s history of exclusion and racism in land access, agricultural loans, housing policy, immigration, and other systems has led to disparities in wealth, income and opportunity. As a result, many farmers markets in Oregon are majority-white spaces and have not traditionally served Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) in our communities. Lack of representation and white-dominant culture can exclude both vendors and shoppers of color. OFMA aspires for farmers markets to be supportive, welcoming and inclusive spaces for all of Oregon’s community members.
OFMA takes responsibility for our role in perpetuating oppressive systems. To achieve our mission—to support local agriculture and healthy communities by strengthening and promoting Oregon’s farmers markets —we must work to dismantle existing structures and support efforts to replace them with just systems that serve all Oregonians.
We commit to the ongoing work of collective liberation from inequity. We strive to center the leadership of, prioritize resources for, and give decision making power to BIPOC and immigrant communities. Racism intersects with other forms of oppression such as misogyny, homophobia, classism and ableism, and we aim to support equity for all communities through our focus on racial justice.
We will accomplish this by:
Asking and addressing the following questions for all OFMA activities:
-Who is missing from this conversation?
-Whose experiences are we centering in this conversation? Whose experiences are we ignoring?
-Who benefits from this conversation? Who is burdened?
-Do our decision-making processes center those who are impacted?
-What beliefs and biases might impact this decision?
-How does this activity advance racial justice and gender, cultural, and/or geographic equity?
Addressing current power structures perpetuated by OFMA that prevent the centering of BIPOC and other communities impacted by oppression, including within our:
-Staff
-Board membership
Committee membership
-Program participants
-Member markets
As a statewide network and with a broad coalition of partners, we will model deep relationship building and structural transparency by:
-Addressing the lack of diversity in our own organization, identifying the barriers upholding that lack of diversity, and actively addressing those barriers.
-Implementing a decision-making framework for all future OFMA activities that leads with equity and prevents activities and goals from upholding dominant-culture narratives.
-Sharing our ongoing DEI work through all OFMA communications.
-Uplifting and supporting BIPOC-led markets and their communities of vendors and shoppers.
We welcome questions and feedback via email at: info@oregonfarmersmarkets.org
For more information about diversity, equity, and inclusion for your farmers market, please go to OFMA’s resources on anti-racism.