The movie “Fresh” will screen on Thursday March 1st followed by a panel discussion and jazz music by Eve Silber and Ben Barson.

On Thursday, March 15, COLORS Restaurant will host the fourth ¡Build Bridges Not Walls! — a collaborative benefit series to raise funds and awareness about parallel struggles for justice. The evening will begin with a screening of the documentary FRESH at 7pm, followed by a discussion led by food justice activists Karen Washington and Eric Weltman and music by jazz maestros Eve Silber and Ben Barson.

The cover charge for the event is a donation, and a sliding scale of $2 to $20 is suggested. Proceeds will go to support the Black Urban Growers and NY Faith & Justice’s Farm Bill Working Group, both of whom are working to involve grassroots community voices in food justice reform.

This gathering will mark the fourth in a series entitled ¡Build Bridges Not Walls! which was launched by COLORS  in collaboration with several artists and organizers. “Our goal is to harness the unifying power of music and artistic expression to create solidarity, raise awareness, and generate funds for these two related struggles,” said Juan Carlos Ruiz of COLORS, which is a worker-owned cooperative dedicated to ethical eating. “We need to come together to strengthen our struggles for justice.”  More at: http://www.colors-newyork.com/

The event is also cosponsored by the 4th Street Food Co-op, Oxfam Action Corps NYC, Food & Water Watch, and Trinity Grace Church – East Village.

Food and drink will be available for purchase. COLORS Restaurant uses local ingredients and trains local employees in collective entrepreneurship to create an eclectic menu and communal dining experience that provides excellently and ethically prepared meals. The gathering runs from 9pm to midnight and is located at 417 Lafayette Street, accessible via the 6 train to Astor Place or the R to 8th St-NYU.

More information on the film, speakers, performers and sponsors:
FRESH is a feature documentary film by Ana Sofia Joanes that celebrates the food architects around the country who are boldly reinventing our food system with sustainable agriculture initiatives. More than a movie, FRESH is a gateway to action. It offers tangible actions that individuals and communities can take to become active participants in this exciting, vibrant, and fast-growing movement — as energetic as planting urban gardens and creating warm composts from food waste, and as simple as buying locally-grown products and preserving or freezing seasonal produce to eat later in the year. More at freshthemovie.com

The Black Urban Growers (BUGs) works to build networks and community support for growers in both urban and rural settings. Through education and advocacy around food and farm issues, we nurture collective black leadership to ensure we have a seat at the table. In October 2011, BUGS hosted the second annual Black Farmers and Urban Gardeners Conference, which drew more than 300 attendees to the Hostos Community College in the Bronx to explore the theme “health, wealth and justice.” More at blackfarmersconf.org

The NY Faith & Justice Farm Bill Working Group is a collaborative effort to educate faith communities and the general public about how the 2012 Food & Farm Bill could end hunger, promote healthy diets, heal the environment, support family farms and support living wage jobs in the food system. They helped organize a conference at Riverside Church this fall that drew more than 150 participants. They are currently asking groups to endorse a set of principles that has been developed by the NYC Food and Farm Bill Working group to build support for essential reforms. More at foodbillnyc.wikispaces.com

Eve Silber is a jazz singer and guitarist who carries out her love affair with the American Songbook in a swinging fashion and with the joy of the traditional jazz era. A long time resident of the West Village, Eve is a teacher of voice and guitar (student of Dave Van Ronk) as well as an educator in the field of theatre-ineducation (student of Augusto Boal). Since September 2011 she has been actively engaged in the OCCUPY movement on Alliance Building and Community Affairs, as well as facilitating theatre-based workshops. Eve
can be found in performance every Wednesday at the legendary Arthur’s Tavern, New York City’s longest running jazz club. More at myspace.com/evesilber

Benjamin Barson is a baritone saxophonist, writer, producer, and activist. A New York City resident, he works daily to build a revolutionary Left culture that places the intrinsic value of the Earth at its center, as well as overthrowing the triple specters of white supremacy, Imperialism, and patriarchy. Currently he is working on a revival of the work of activist-musician Calvin Massey, an overlooked 1960s African-American composer who worked with the Black Panther Party as well as John Coltrane, Charlie Parker, and a whole generation of leading activists and musicians. He is a member of the revolutionary collective Scientific Soul Sessions, and its sister project, Ecosocialist Horizons. More at ecosocialisthorizons.com

Karen Washington is a lifelong New York City resident who has been a community activist since 1985. As a City Farms Trainer, she helped people all over the city grow more food and build healthier neighborhoods, and as a member of the La Familia Verde Garden Coalition, she launched a City Farms Market, bringing garden grown and farm fresh vegetables to her neighbors. Her motto is: “you can’t say you’ve made it, if the people around you are still struggling; I am because we are.” A lifelong New York City resident, Karen graduated from Hunter College with honors in physical therapy in 1977 with BS degree magna cum laude, and received her Masters degree from NYU in occupational biomechanics and ergonomics in 1981. More at justfood.org/aboutus/just-food-board

Eric Weltman is Senior Organizer for Food & Water Watch in New York. He has over 20 years of experience leading social justice campaigns and building progressive power. He has taught urban politics at Suffolk University and written for such publications as The American Prospect, In These Times, Dollars & Sense. A native of New Jersey, Eric graduated from University of Michigan and earned an MA in Urban & Environmental Policy from Tufts. Taken from foodandwaterwatch.org/about/who-we-are/

4th Street Food Co-op is a member-owned and -operated food coop in New York City’s East Village. It is open to the public, and focuses on offering locally grown, organic and ethically produced products. More at 4thstreetfoodcoop.org

Oxfam Action Corps NYC is a part of the Oxfam America Action Corps, a group of dedicated volunteers working across the country to mobilize public support for policies to end poverty and hunger. They are currently promoting Oxfam’s GROW food justice campaign. More at www.oxfamactioncorpsnyc.org

Food & Water Watch is a non-profit organization that advocates for common sense policies that will result in healthy, safe food and access to safe and affordable drinking water. More at foodandwaterwatch.org/about

Trinity Grace Church–East Village is a part of the Trinity Grace network of neighborhood churches in New York. Together, they work for the common good and renewal of our city. More at trinitygraceeastvillage.com