INDIANAPOLIS — On Saturday evening, 300 people gathered at Newfields in Indianapolis for a community meal to help better understand issues, like food insecurity, facing others.
Those who attended the meal came together with the goal of provoking a change and leading to a stronger and better community.
The meal was the first event for a social practice project called "At the crossroads - a community meal," led by St. Paul, Minnesota based artist Seitu Jones.
"This is the first of a many meals to have this over the table conversation about race, class, gender," Seitu Jones said. "Specifically about housing and all the many injustices that helped lead toward food injustice."
People from neighborhoods like Meridian Kessler, Mapleton Fall Creek and Butler Tarkington sat at a 400 foot long table for the meal.
"The table that we are sitting at we were actually able to talk about food deserts," Stephanie Roberston said. "Where people shop and how we can actually work on things together to help with the communities find a better access to food into healthcare."
The table had a hand quilt covered with red lines. Those lines severed as a talking point.
"One of the things we are talking about it's red lining that old practice of insurance companies and banks where they will draw a red line around a community of color and African-American or poor white communities and deny services to those communities," Jones said. "It's because of that practice that many of these injustices like food injustice manifest it self today."
The meal provided an opportunity for people to learn about the barriers each other face, continue the converstaion and provoke a change.
