Dive! Trailer from Compeller Pictures on Vimeo.
This post is for all of you that have given me grief over the last two years for dumpster diving. Granted, when I dove almost two and a half years ago, I wasn't aware of the social justice action that I was taking part in.
For those of you that are completely repulsed by the idea of digging food out of a trash can, take two minutes to watch the trailer for the documentary, Dive! This film was made by the friends of my friends' friends :) Not only are they surviving SOLELY off of food that they find in dumpsters, but they are engaging in the broader societal issues of world hunger, political machines, and agribusiness. Additionally, in my mind, they are also engaging in broader theological issues of stewardship (caring for all of God's creation) with regard to the ways we consume as a culture. The filmmakers expose the horrific facts on the waste that is produced within the food industry and juxtapose our excess with much of the world's deficit. In other words, they wrestle with the question, "How is it possible that we can waste so much when so much of the world is going hungry?"
While the idea of dumpster diving as a lifestyle is new to me, these broader issues are precisely the ones that I'm wrestling with in the independent research project that I am involved in at my school. Two other women and I meet every week over a shared meal and conversation about food, community, and spirituality. We are supervised by a theology professor. What a beautiful gift these women have been in my life (and in my marriage) to consider how my food choices reflect so much about my sense of self, community, and creation at large.
If the trailer is intriguing, I HIGHLY recommend watching the whole film (it's only 50 minutes and it's currently on Netflix Instant!) It has really sparked some great conversation between T and I with regards to the choices we make, our "food consciousness," and our lifestyle.
Stick it to the man! Watch Dive!
And who is the man that you want to "stick it to"? If people wish to dumster dive, I have no problem with it as we still live in a free country (barely). Excess regulations from the federal government restrict the recycling of perfectly good food. However, if the big-eared idiot gets reelected, I'm certain that restaurants will get fined for cooking too much food and groceries will be fined for having excess inventory. You've been on the west coast toooooooo long!
ReplyDeleteChip
I'm confused as to which regulations you're referring to Chip? Like, regulating what you can or cannot put in your personal recycling bin? What grocery stores can put in their recycling bin? What grocery stores or individuals can donate to food banks and soup kitchens?
DeleteUnfortunately it's not the government that restricts dumpster divers and prohibits people from consuming perfectly good food pulled out of the dumpsters of grocery stores. It's the private corporation that chooses to prohibit those that wish to consume their "trash."
The power is certainly still in the consumer though. Unfortunately we have become accustomed to a life of abundance where bigger is better; not to mention the entitlement expressed in our desire to have exactly what we want when we want it. We could certainly use the same language that social conservatives choose to argue their other championed issues, the language of what is natural vs. unnatural. Unfortunately if it might make our lives a little less convenient, we aren't as keen on arguing for what is the "more natural way." (For example, eating out of season food, our over consumption of dairy and meat products that lead to the extremely unnatural process of raising beef and poultry). It's a nasty cycle and it's all connected: waste, obesity, poverty, hunger, over-consumption, instant gratification, etc.
http://www.snagfilms.com/films/title/meet_the_freegans
ReplyDeleteYeah, it's called Freeganism. I saw a documentary a few years ago, though admittedly "Dive!" looks far more enjoyable.
p.s. Snagfilms is a really awesome resource for documentaries about...well...damn near everything. xoxoxo