Food drives around Chicago continue a tradition of revolutionaries feeding the community

In January 1969, the Black Panther Party (BPP) launched its Free Breakfast for School Children program by serving a menu of chocolate milk, eggs, meat, cereal and fresh oranges to the children of Oakland, Calif., before they headed off to school. Within weeks, the program grew from serving tens of students, to hundreds, and later thousands as BPP chapters in other cities adopted the practice, thus creating a tradition for Black revolutionaries to feed their communities.  

Coming off of a Memorial Day weekend that left protesters exhausted from marching in the name of justice for Black lives and neighborhoods devastated from looting, the city responded by cutting off roads and highway exits that give access to downtown and the North side, from south and west. All downtown exits from the Dan Ryan and 290 expressways were closed, the CTA “L” rail system was suspended, Lake Shore Drive was closed past 31st Street and all bridges downtown except LaSalle street were lifted. 

For the few streets that were accessible, National Guard and Chicago Police Department (CDP)  officers restricted traffic. This tactic left folks in these neighborhoods to fend for themselves while their local resources were rendered inaccessible due to rioting and unplanned closures of essential stores, including the Food 4 Less on North & Cicero in Austin, and the Jewel at Lake Meadows in Bronzeville. 

On May 31, Chicago Public Schools (CPS) announced that their free meal program would be suspended on June 1. Following the closure of school buildings in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, CPS began a program on March 15 that allows any students to pick up a food bag covering three days of breakfast and lunch. The suspension became a call to action for community organizers and charitable organizations throughout the city to feed the children.

Limited food options and lack of nutrition have had a profound effect on students’ ability to perform well in school. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, students are still expected to log on— despite limited access to the internet— check in, attend lectures and complete assignments for classes daily. 

A 2013 study published in the Frontiers of Modern Neuroscience found that eating breakfast daily has a positive on academic performance. The Black Panthers realized this connection early on in the lifespan of their program, thanks to feedback from the schools. 

According to Ruth Beckford, a parishioner at St. Augustine Episcopal Church in Oakland who helped with the Panthers’ program, “The school principal came down and told us how different the children were,” when she was interviewed for an article in the Annals of the Association of American Geographers in 2009. “They weren’t falling asleep in class [and] they weren’t crying with stomach cramps,” she continued.

On the evening of May 31, prior to the CPS announcement, Kemdah Stroud, founder of Thankful for Chicago, had made plans to partner with a friend to provide nourishment and free rides to protesters on the frontlines. “When I heard that CPS was stopping the program, I knew immediately that our mission had shifted,” she says. “We had to feed the kids.”

“I reached out to [Social Works], and they were organizing their own food drive in Englewood,” Stroud said. Social Works is a non-profit that promotes arts programming and civic engagement for youth. 

“We were able to partner up to split the resources between two sites, in Englewood and Garfield Park,” Stroud said. “We continued the collaboration for the first few days but now we’re doing it ourselves at Garfield.”

June 1 was more than a success. Within three hours, Stroud had rounded up about $10,000 in donations and many individuals were eager to lend their services and space to what she named The People’s Free Food Program. Michael Airhart, CEO of Taste for the Homeless— a nonprofit that travels the city to cook hot meals and provide clothing for homeless people— brought out his grill to cook for people, and independent chef Big Vino lent space and materials to increase the capacity for hot meals.

Stroud had been an organizer for years prior to founding Thankful for Chicago in 2019, working in the past with Chicago Votes as an event curator, and Save Money Save Life as operations specialist. As executive director of Thankful for Chicago, she collaborates with other non-profits for assistance in executing ideas, and signal boosting their charitable efforts.