First, I went to see Polycultures last night at the Cleveland Film Festival. David Pearl and Tom Kondilas are friends of mine, which may have informed my thoughts. I was stunned. It was a great, thorough movie about local food in Cleveland, but with national implications. In the same way that Cleveland has become a study for other cities in the mortgage crisis, I think that Cleveland can be a case study – or is becoming a case study – for local food. (I called CityFresh this morning.)
Second, I opened the New Yorker three minutes ago and saw this quote:
“What inspires me about New York City, Paris and London is the vibrant multiculturalism. Different people from different places fuel each city with an eclectic vibe, taking it to another place. Local becomes global…” David Sanchez, Saxophonist
It was from a Banana Republic ad. It reminded me of people who want the benefits that other cultures bring, but don’t want to let the people in. They don’t see all the value that is added from immigrants, yet they desperately want that value and don’t understand when they don’t get it.
Thanks for your feedback on the movie here and before, Andrew! I like the feel of this City Vision blog… and linked to it on the PolyCultures blog.