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–Florida State Rep. David Richardson is a leading candidate for the Democratic nomination in Florida’s open 27th District Congressional race.
-The district is currently represented by retiring Republican Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen. While Ros-Lehtinen has represented the district for over 30 years, it is Democratic leaning. Hillary Clinton beat Donald Trump in the district by nearly 20 points in 2016.
-Many national Republicans are concerned that the race is a lost cause. The GOP has had a hard time finding top-tier candidates to run while Democrats have 6 candidates who have raised over $200,000. (Some of the other contenders include former federal judge Mary Barzee-Flores, former Knight Foundation official Matt Haggman, state Senator Jose Javier Rodriguez, Miami Beach City Commissioner Kristen Rosen Gonzalez and Miami Commissioner Ken Russell.
-Richardson has raised over $1 million for his effort and is considered one of the more viable contenders in the race.
–Elected to the Florida House in 2012, Richardson became the first openly gay person ever elected to the Florida Legislature.
–A retired forensic auditor, Richardson made a splash in Tallahassee with his efforts to reform the state jail system. He was particularly focused on the way the state treated youthful offenders.
-He has spent over 800 hours personally inspecting state prisons by using a little known law that allows state lawmakers to show up to prisons unannounced. His efforts led to the closure of Lancaster Correctional Institution in Gilchrist County.
-In an interview with RISE NEWS, Richardson said that he would be a progressive leader in Congress. He said that he would push for increased gun control measures including an assault weapons ban, work towards making the United States have a single payer healthcare system and roll back charter schools while defending “traditional” public schools.
-Richardson also told us that he would push to impeach President Trump in Congress. He said that his skills as a forensic auditor would come in handy during impeachment proceedings.
WATCH: David Richardson on how he wants to go after President Trump in Congress.
WATCH: David Richardson on the issues.
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Can This Millennial Lawyer Be Florida’s First Democratic Attorney General In 17 years?
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A Comprehensive Guide to Dumpster Diving And Alternative Food
By Allyn Farach
While there’s absolutely nothing wrong with buzzing out to Walmart for a can of spaghetti in red sauce, there’s a sense of satisfaction that comes with making the food you’re eating yourself. Taking it a step further – going out and acquiring the food yourself can be even more rewarding than picking it up at a grocery store or restaurant. Forget convenience: Below are ways to get creative with alternative food sources. Before we begin, let’s address that some of these methods are not for the weak-hearted.
Dumpster Diving
To be clear, Dumpster Diving doesn’t involve actually diving into dumpsters.
“You can open the lid and gingerly pull out goods or jump in and dig deep. If you’re grossed out by the idea, wear rain boots and bring gloves,” writes Vanessa Alvadaro, native Floridian and dumpster diver. Furthermore, what you pull out probably won’t be overripe produce and rotting meat.
Approximately 40 percent of food bought in the US goes to waste, so what may be found in a dumpster may be okay, if not in perfect condition (unless it’s covered in mold. Don’t eat anything covered in mold.)
Luckily, the dumpster diving community is pretty open to new people, and almost always ready to help. R/DumpsterDiving is full of people giving advice to newbies, people planning to make runs together, and even a map that lists good diving spots. With an engaging community, free food and stuff to resell, what could possibly be the downside to such a concept? The law.
The owners of the Miami Produce Center were cited after video cameras captured people going through their dumpsters for food, some of which was later resold to restaurants. Furthermore, some business owners may set up cameras, dumpster locks and signs warning people not to trespass or go through the garbage. If they catch anyone, they may have them taken in by police.
So what can potential divers do? They can travel in groups to be safe, be discerning about what they pick out so that they don’t get sick, scope out spots before they leave, ask business owners before they dive and be wary of cameras!
Urban Farming
If Dumpster Diving isn’t your cup of trash, gardening might be a more appealing route to alternative food sources. A community garden offers people who register a small plot of land to grow whatever they want, from decorative flowers to bountiful fruits and vegetables. Laura Lafata, who runs social media and organizes meetings for the South Beach Community Garden, elaborated that the garden offers all kinds of things for people.
“It’s a piece of paradise in a very densely populated part of the city that allows one the pleasure of digging in the soil and the joy of producing one’s own food supply,” Lafata said. Indeed, the benefits of a community garden are being allowed to pick what you want to grow and owning a little plot of land in the urban jungle.
“Everyone can grow whatever they want, but we encourage gardeners to grow what will grow best in our climate with a focus on heat tolerant varieties, Asian and Caribbean vegetables, lettuces, sprouts, okra, sweet potatoes, radishes, beans, tomatoes, snow peas, eggplants.”
So there’s no risk of getting bored when it comes to food and the garden, Miami Beach Parks and Recreation Department offers a budget for hoses, trash cans and water, so the simple parts of taking care of a garden and growing your own food are covered as well.
Growing your own food isn’t always easy. The Garden covers the basics, but the gardeners have to bring their own soil and seeds, build their own boxes and maintain their own plots. The prices of soil, seeds and wood are steep, so the cost of urban farming can easily add up.
Gardeners are left to the whims of Mother Nature when it comes to the fate of their plots. Frosts can kill a crop, hurricanes can tear them down, heat can dry them up, and rain can drown them.
“Heat is a bigger issue here, along with rain, sometimes not enough, sometimes too much.” Lafata said.
With Miami having an average of roughly 60 inches of annual rainfall, along with a dry season that runs throughout winter, the best that gardeners can do is prepare and prevent for the worst. Gardeners have to prepare against pests such as the Eastern Lubber Grasshopper and even iguanas, all which want to chow down on fresh garden greens. Finally, simply, and most importantly, running a garden takes a lot of work.
“The biggest problem we have at the garden is commitment,” Lafata said. “You need a lot of time to nurture and care for your plot to successfully grow anything.”
Smaller plants such as radishes and cucumbers can take up to three weeks to grow, while larger plants like pumpkins can take even longer. The combined factors can easily wear anyone down, but reaping your own delicious rewards in the form of a salad or a fruit tart can be a great joy at the end of the day.
“Everything grown tastes sweeter and better when it’s just picked,” Lafata said.
If the messiness of Dumpster Diving and the arduous labor of gardening threatens you, Farm to Table (FTT) is an alternative food source that you don’t have to work for.
FTT is a movement primarily for getting food locally and serving it to local customers. It also keeps customers informed about where their food came from.
Jensen Eddings, the director of Media & Marketing for Batch Miami, explains the benefits of those contacts: “Farm to table and using fresh ingredients benefits everyone: the supplier has the client, the restaurant enjoys the lower costs, and the customer gets fresh, local food. It’s a win-win-win…Through strengthening relationships with regional purveyors and highlighting local ingredients, South Florida cuisine has a chance to set itself apart from the rest of the country.”
Eddings also said that FTT is an easy, effective way to get fresh food. The quick access to local suppliers means that food can be used the same day that it’s picked, caught or slaughtered.
Like the rest of alternative food sources, FTT doesn’t come without its costs. Using local suppliers means that FTT restaurants can only use what grows in the area, and it can impact what gets cooked.
“Using local ingredients definitely forces flexibility,” Eddings said. “Sometimes people just run out of things. We do our best to stay ahead of slip-ups and make up for when it does happen with fun specials.”
Essentially, diners probably won’t be seeing things like cherries or Atlantic salmon on tables at FTT restaurants. Furthermore, some people are beginning to see FTT as a fad that’s quickly fading. Vanity Fair published an article titled, “Is It Time To Table Farm To Table?” dissecting how FTT is merely a fad popularized by good PR – a buzz word for fast food companies to use to prove that their food isn’t processed.
Eddings writes that FTT is more than just jargon to turn heads-it gives people the information that they want about the food that they want to eat.
“People love to get more out of their dining experience than ever before, so it’s raising the bar for everyone,” Eddings said. “In turn, we’re getting higher-quality restaurants. It’s awesome and an exciting trend to embrace.”
Like this piece? Rise News just launched a few weeks ago and is only getting started. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date with global news.
Cover Photo Credit: Wei Tchou/Flickr (CC by 2.0)
Correction (9-17-2015, 12:27 PM): The original version of this story incorrectly identified the person who runs social media and organizes meetings for the South Beach Community Garden. Her name is Laura Lafata. We regret the error and are happy to correct the record.
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Beginning Of The End? Venezuela Opposition Party Claims Victory In Blow To Chavistas
CARACAS, Venezuela — Leaders of Venezuela’s opposition claimed victory ahead of official results in Sunday’s crucial legislative elections that could alter the country’s balance of power after 17 years of socialist rule. Hours after polls closed, several opposition leaders took to the Internet to announce that they had won a majority of seats in the National… Read More
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The Story Behind “Miami’s Like Most Super News Source, Bro”
Folks, there is finally a website that is making fun of Miami, the sunshine capital of the world, in the bro-tastic way ever.
Welcome: The Plantain
It is a satirical news website in the style of The Onion run by some folks at Engage Miami, a non-profit that seeks to raise youth involvement in Miami’s public life.
And by satirical, the creator of The Plantain, Justin Wales, means fake, even if it sometimes sounds somewhat real.
Here’s some recent headlines from the site:
Miami Herald to Drop Vowels in Cost Cutting Effort
Dolphin Expressway to be Converted to 15 Consecutive Miles of Toll Booths
Florida Orange Growers Protests Beyonce Concert Over Lemonade Release
“I would not take anything in The Plantain as factually accurate,” Sara Yousuf, a member of Engage Miami said in an interview with RISE NEWS. “The Plantain does not ask people to do things. It is certainly not a tool for political organizing, but it does create conversations and awareness about things that happen in Miami.”
The target of these bitting jokes are millennials from across South Florida who are from all walks of life.
According to the Census Bureau, millenials have become the largest population in the country, but they are also considered to be the most recent generation to become highly detached from political institutions, based on a study made by the Pew Research Center.
While millennials can be perceived as disconnected from the political process, Wales says that they are connected in terms of philosophy of thought.
“That connection means that you are able to mobilize much easier,” Wales said. “Examples like Black Lives Matter, the current Bernie Sander’s Campaign, even the previous presidential campaign for Obama showed that millennials were able to be connected through these movements.”
But in order for a movement to happen then people in it have to be able to connect with each other and have a common well of knowledge to draw upon.
“Any person can have access to any type of information,” Wales said. “We have seen over the course of the past years, the democratization of content, in which, any person can distribute information to whoever they want.”
To hone on this newfound democratized content flow, The Plantain’s content producers, some members of Engage Miami as well as other freelance writers, are providing humorous stories not only to entertain millennials, as well as other generations, but also to bring awareness to local issues in Miami.
“In order to communicate with young people, you need to speak to them at their level, through humor and other unique ways.” Wales said. “All this to present an idea and make it enticing for a reader to take it in.”
But political content is only interesting if it is fun according to Yousuf.
“There is something about satire that makes you laugh, and then it makes you think and ask questions,” Yousuf said. “We are making fun as who we are in Miami, but the point that we are trying to make is very real.”
RISE NEWS is a grassroots journalism news organization that is working to change the way young people become informed and engaged in public affairs. You can write for us.
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