Los Angeles Community Bands Together to Help Save the ‘Gangsta Garden’ From Eviction
The “Gangsta Garden” is a vegetable garden created by Ron Finley in 2010 with the aim of providing an oasis in the food desert of South Central Los Angeles. However, the garden is now under threat, as Finley and the garden operations are facing potential eviction by new landlord Strategic Acquisitions Inc. and have only seven days to either purchase the property for $500,000 or leave it behind.
Luckily, the Los Angeles community isn’t going down without a fight and have joined together to save Finley’s urban farm. Actress Nell Newman, founder of Newman’s Own, and John Foraker, President of Annie’s Homegrown, started the Care2 petition, which has gained over 26,000 signatures to date.
“What Ron has done is incredible, really,” Foraker told Care2. “His vision for a healthier world has not only provided nourishment, it has bolstered a community. I hope the support of my Care2 petition will convince the property owner that Ron’s project is valuable and ought to stay.”
The petition urges Mayor Eric Garcetti and Strategic Acquisitions Inc. to stop the eviction proceedings and accept more than $300,000 donated through GoFundMe as a down payment until the rest of the money can be raised.
