Community Solidarity

Community Solidarity is a grassroots movement to share wealth with nutritious food across Long Island and New York City communities. The organization is America’s largest vegetarian hunger relief program where compassion for people, animals, and the environment all go hand in hand. They believe nutritious food is a right and that no one should ever go hungry. Their philosophy is based on the belief that empowered compassionate communities can heal themselves and in doing so create the blueprint for greater social change.

Their viewpoint along with the thousands of community solidarity volunteers, is the blind indifference that makes it easy for some people to overlook the hunger and poor among us is the same indifference that makes it easy for many to overlook the suffering of animals in factory farms. Furthermore, the indifference blinds people to the environmental destruction of these factory farms while contributing to an economic system that devalues animals, the poor, and hungry in our communities.

This compassion project was born so people could have access to fresh produce where nutritious food is often limited like in certain neighborhoods known as ‘food deserts.’ These areas lack fresh organic food and have mostly fast food chains which contribute to America’s overall poor health problems. Fast food and lack of nutrients has been linked to higher risks of diabetes, heart disease, ADHD, obesity, and cancer.

Community solidarity is working to plant positive and healthy changes in these neighborhoods where food banks usually consist of cheap food with not only higher shelf lives, but higher amounts of processed sugar, cholesterol, and saturated fats. In comparison to 48%-70% of food distributed through Community solidarity that is organic produce.

The range is due to seasonal adjustments by local farm contributions during the winter months when not as much fresh produce is available to donate. The other 30%-52% of food consists of whole grain breads, vegetarian groceries, and hot served vegan meals. The non-profit organization has received a tremendous amount of support over the years while more and more people ask about vegetarian and vegan diets and share their stories about how the food has made them healthier and energized.

Recently, the organization announced their main food rescue truck broke down after transporting over 21 million pounds of plant-based groceries to the hungry over the last six years. They are currently organizing an emergency fundraiser for a replacement truck and are seeking additional volunteers for the routine distributions.

If you would like to get involved and support the wonderful work being done with this grassroots organization you can visit their website. Community solidarity also accepts school supplies, clothing, plants and seedlings, material goods, and toys as donations.