Rutland
posted
Jan 2, 2013
Photo courtesy of Ted Shattuck
Rutland Community Cinema at the Rutland Free Library continues
in January with Soul Food Junkies, Jan. 9.
Community Cinema, a national documentary screening series
sponsored locally by VPT and Independent Television Service (ITVS)
presents a screening of Soul Food Junkies at the Rutland Free
Library on Wednesday, Jan. 9 at 7 p.m. In Soul Food Junkies
filmmaker Byron Hurt sets out on a historical and culinary journey
to learn more about the soul food tradition and its relevance to
black cultural identity. Hurt's exploration was inspired by his
father's lifelong love affair with the high-fat, calorie-rich
traditional soul food diet and his unwillingness to give it up even
in the face of a life-threatening health crisis. Hurt discovers
that the relationship between African Americans and culinary dishes
like ribs, grits, and fried chicken is culturally based,
deep-rooted, complex, and often deadly.
Through candid interviews with soul food cooks, historians, and
scholars, as well as with doctors, family members, and everyday
people, Soul Food Junkies puts this culinary tradition under the
microscope to examine both its positive and negative consequences.
Hurt also explores the socioeconomic conditions in predominantly
black neighborhoods, where it can be difficult to find healthy
options, and meets some pioneers in the emerging food justice
movement who are challenging the food industry, encouraging
communities to "go back to the land" by creating sustainable and
eco-friendly gardens, advocating for healthier options in local
supermarkets, supporting local farmers' markets, avoiding highly
processed fast foods, and cooking healthier versions of traditional
soul food.
For more information, visit www.communitycinema.org
