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Welcome to
THE ABOLITION GARDEN
Cultivating Healing Communities
We are BIPOC & women-led urban farm centered around Indigenous land stewardship and cultural preservation. We are based in Globeville, Denver on the lands of the Ute, Cheyenne, and Arapahoe people as well as 40+ tribes who have moved through and with this land. We are reimagining the farm as a place of healing, a place of protest, and a place of love. We prioritize and center Black, Indigenous, People of Color, and people with other marginalized identities.
This is a space by us & for us.
SHARING FOOD, STORIES,
AND FUTURES
![(Story below) THANK YOU to the elders who joined us in circle yesterday. 🫱🏼🫲🏾 Thank you for sharing your stories, memories, dreams/prayers for our community and our future. Thank you to the youth & elders for coming together in plática. And thank you for your trust. We know there’s a lot of grief mixed within the joys of remembering. And it’s a privilege to hear & witness you.
We see you. Your fights, your wins, and your losses. And we recognize that we are carrying forth the work of many who came before us and that we do not walk alone, ever. Thank you for all that you’ve done and continue to do. We’re getting ready to carry that fire, that medicine forward. ❤️🔥🪶 We are continuing sacred work, preparing to make mistakes along the way, learn from them, and continue planting seeds. We are feeling so grateful, deeply humbled, and full. 💙🙏🏾🌱
[HER]STORY:🚪This door belonged to Gil’s daughter, Jessica Herrera. Her bedroom door. When their family was being displaced from Elyria, she was the last one to leave the block, the only one left on Baldwin Ct for a month after everyone had been forced to leave. She was only 19 as she took a stand within her family’s home & watched her neighbors homes being bulldozed around her. She only left after threat of incarceration. She couldn’t gather much. She chose to bring her door with her, covered in the names of her friends, family, and community. This door is a portal between past, present and future. When the door was once opened a family [a home] lay behind it. Now, an empty parking lot. What can we imagine behind this door in the future? ♥️✊🏽🦋
Image Description: A worn wooden door, covered in names, notes, and signatures. Behind the door is the National Western Center, an empty parking lot, and a bright blue sky.](https://scontent-den2-1.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.82787-15/826139748_17965609161179527_7331118363121752909_n.jpg?stp=dst-jpg_e35_tt6&_nc_cat=111&ccb=7-5&_nc_sid=18de74&efg=eyJlZmdfdGFnIjoiRkVFRC5iZXN0X2ltYWdlX3VybGdlbi5DMyJ9&_nc_ohc=ZcA1f9QvG10Q7kNvwHOYH3i&_nc_oc=AdrtFpua32irQ5g5kpvOBvdECejMcITjK2TmD4PEmTHC54CnfK9pEY4pLrzK1f__tqA&_nc_zt=23&_nc_ht=scontent-den2-1.cdninstagram.com&edm=ANo9K5cEAAAA&_nc_gid=yACEFBWhwQDG20EqTUHuHg&_nc_tpa=Q5bMBQLLNLnahkBfYMfbcw0sawe0MMD2Sdv94GoEQCxXOje-xpWP8ikgI-21xzFJTXptNBpbDoW-87ro&oh=00_AQSJ1r-ikCq7voRXGmVRDtu7FiGE2BqFbfQESL7sgYLoCQ&oe=6AF7C778)
![Our community altar is back up along with the joy /grief jar gifted to us by @asiangirlsignite 🥹💕Just like the altar, these joy / grief jars are a way for us to experience and practice joy and grief collectively. If you’re ever needing something to pick you up or encouragement, please grab one of the notes or trinkets made by the AGI youth! We’re so grateful to be able to share this to the community. 🫶🏼
It’s also been so sweet seeing our community and our youth at TAG give offerings and prayers to the altar and ancestors. From hand drawn butterflies to flowers cut from their own backyard, our altar is so loved and divinely protected (especially by our wasp relatives 🐝 ). We had a neighbor ask if they could place a photo/ offering on the altar and we just wanted to remind folks that this altar is for all of us! If you need a place to grieve or just be, please stop by! Give your reverence and respect, the altar welcomes everyone 💗
[ID 1: a collage of two photos. The top photo is aa jar with a white lid that is decorated with rhinestones and it reads “Asian girls ignite”. The bottom half is a full photo of the altar with a floral cloth covered of photos ans offerings such as flowers and seashells
ID 2: a closeup photo of the altar two green frames with a collage of someone’s beloved. Surrounding it is flowers, seashells and a pocket prayer card
ID 3: a closeup photo of another part of the altar. There’s a pill bottle and also photos of people’s loved ones in the background. Layers on top to the left is a wood photo frame of a man in a black tank top
ID 4: a closeup photo of a black photo frame with Alice Wong in the photo. Surrounding it is flowers, candles and dried corn ans herbs. In the top left corner is a a cement brick with a lady bug and flowers in the opening]](https://scontent-den2-1.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.82787-15/760261426_17956651308179527_5050698007791992185_n.jpg?stp=dst-jpg_e35_tt6&_nc_cat=111&ccb=7-5&_nc_sid=18de74&efg=eyJlZmdfdGFnIjoiQ0FST1VTRUxfSVRFTS5iZXN0X2ltYWdlX3VybGdlbi5DMyJ9&_nc_ohc=N2IJeow4gIQQ7kNvwEsYaX4&_nc_oc=AdqC9czdJvmIXJDuoavj_0ryHL6DrLrfJwlnK0ayr1VeKrziHRmgFiRX20Ad54dp8kQ&_nc_zt=23&_nc_ht=scontent-den2-1.cdninstagram.com&edm=ANo9K5cEAAAA&_nc_gid=yACEFBWhwQDG20EqTUHuHg&_nc_tpa=Q5bMBQLbBvet1qr6R0NPEyo6qAhIQxd0kJ5ix92vDgIVfjh7B-k8XMp1GaF8EPM_oz16LNbTu1syD2LR&oh=00_AQR47q-yjJH2OZ9yPHQFMl3QKQHvYVDQ6kv00s-fyU1ykw&oe=6AF7DC65)
![Create (in) community ✨
Our work is deeply relational and it was so fun to make collages and connect with our youth and each other in a more intimate and artistic way! To express ourselves, to be seen, and to create together are all ways we practice storytelling and deep listening with each other. 💗
[image description: a photo of a pile of collages and paper scraps spread out on top of various color and designed picnic blankets]](https://scontent-den2-1.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.82787-15/753243148_17955765657179527_8121968805078333673_n.jpg?stp=dst-jpg_e35_tt6&_nc_cat=103&ccb=7-5&_nc_sid=18de74&efg=eyJlZmdfdGFnIjoiRkVFRC5iZXN0X2ltYWdlX3VybGdlbi5DMyJ9&_nc_ohc=_6lnxJopB_MQ7kNvwEj731G&_nc_oc=AdplxGbs1ELWUH5H4yBZwC1b1bmWzVdjqWPUqpeD5pFeHb4UOCryXvMyiT_GMk4mmZU&_nc_zt=23&_nc_ht=scontent-den2-1.cdninstagram.com&edm=ANo9K5cEAAAA&_nc_gid=yACEFBWhwQDG20EqTUHuHg&_nc_tpa=Q5bMBQIHGYkxPrfkJjNk_CkWJ_gkix7Gk6oDcDeI6gZlVMLYaOHgL4zFLvXyBTWbSGXQx8PpI4-VciO2&oh=00_AQTL8e4FCPd6RGnuFe25r78R_u5ussrngANxrwJijTCyQg&oe=6AF7E2BA)
![Film from walks around the block & moments in community ♥️ Love our neighborhood.
The last few months, we’ve been recognizing times of convergence, when our past+present+future come together. Our ancestors walking with us wherever we go. This place is strong and so are we.
[Just a reminder that all that rage you feel is love, and love can burn down empires.]❤️🔥
Image Descriptions coming in comments!](https://scontent-den2-1.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.82787-15/695818439_17944951746179527_4957581189624598229_n.jpg?stp=dst-jpg_e35_tt6&_nc_cat=109&ccb=7-5&_nc_sid=18de74&efg=eyJlZmdfdGFnIjoiQ0FST1VTRUxfSVRFTS5iZXN0X2ltYWdlX3VybGdlbi5DMyJ9&_nc_ohc=wzCYVlXan6YQ7kNvwGjfN4J&_nc_oc=AdqhwISVLt-5yhzL5LXe8TIyKelgvCjxNEgrCmHF-LEdnnEBGOhhDvLHh7YA4mstAnc&_nc_zt=23&_nc_ht=scontent-den2-1.cdninstagram.com&edm=ANo9K5cEAAAA&_nc_gid=yACEFBWhwQDG20EqTUHuHg&_nc_tpa=Q5bMBQKf2soYH1WGBC4OiYSnlnhH1VtCIB3qwbERIxCmWJaWqPPQ-31I1_U-JZSv1QfCsyPGQSDrIMp0&oh=00_AQQbc2a9hPI4rxIrv5LXlTm7d7wmNpybmaRdJConHsPOCg&oe=6AF7DC34)
![PHOTO STORY: The Abolition Garden Youth Zine Release! 📷📖
Feeling so much gratitude for this beautiful season and these beautiful people. (and so many more not pictured!) Our youth Zine Release kickback is a wrap!! It was so beautiful to see the youth, their families, and the wider community gathered together to celebrate all of the meaningful work they put into the Rootwork Youth Program over the last few months. ♥️
It has been an honor to water and witness the growth of this passionate group of youth. They have challenged us and themselves, and helped create a safe place where we have learned from one another and the land. They worked together to create this year’s zine, which is a beautiful reflection of their own stories, minds, art, passions, and curiosity. Their work is a statement of [resist]ance & [exist]ence, in a time where our people are under immense pressure from the systems that seek to erase us. We’ve never had to sugarcoat those realities with one another. Instead we move together to create real change for ourselves and future generations. 🌎💫
We couldn’t have created any of this alone. We were supported by an amazing community of friends, neighbors, teachers, youth, and of course, the land. It has been a rough year for many, but punctuated with moments of real joy and hope. Hope cultivated by a community that knows love to be power, and collective care to be one of the sweetest manifestations of love. 💕 🖤The overwhelming feeling of gratitude is more than we can put words to, BUT- thank you to the youth, to our team, our friends, our mentors, our families, our neighbors, to the food[medicine] grown in our garden, to everyone who believes in us and who continues to support and pour into this shared dream, to the Land, and to Creator.
Let’s keep dreaming for a better world! ✊🏾💥🖤
Image descriptions coming in the comments!](https://scontent-den2-1.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.82787-15/582089778_17922299364179527_2397821284228909379_n.jpg?stp=dst-jpg_e35_tt6&_nc_cat=105&ccb=7-5&_nc_sid=18de74&efg=eyJlZmdfdGFnIjoiQ0FST1VTRUxfSVRFTS5iZXN0X2ltYWdlX3VybGdlbi5DMyJ9&_nc_ohc=vfTmbFT_ikgQ7kNvwGgibjG&_nc_oc=Adr6nOsJDXxYAnp3zMDFTEJppf8xPp8rAqpMtezl5QS8XqhIx33aEtHYL4ZM9ShL7U8&_nc_zt=23&_nc_ht=scontent-den2-1.cdninstagram.com&edm=ANo9K5cEAAAA&_nc_gid=yACEFBWhwQDG20EqTUHuHg&_nc_tpa=Q5bMBQLpq5ys9M93l-eTGANTZjHluEyBiiVoiKBtpGM-DMV2GdDlz9pFYIEIrFeXe4YoRBj3HKFr9E7v&oh=00_AQRASl2JADNTsV7k1oITWuh0KCDWQX-c7gJnQRZ20y2tig&oe=6AF7CA57)
![CHOPPED 🔪 : The Abolition Garden Edition
We’ve just been creating, connecting, and cheffin’ it up with the Rootwork Youth using veggies grown from our garden and gifted by the community 💕 Thank you so much to @csuspur for welcoming us into your kitchen and letting us cook up a feast!
We can’t believe there’s only TWO WEEKS left of our youth program 😭 We’re so grateful for each and every
one of them and in awe of their creativity and care in everything they do. Keep a lookout for another Rootwork Zine release coming soon!!! 🫶🏼
[Image description 1: a photo of a chopped “bowl” with the youth’s hand touching an assortment of veggies
Image description 2: a photo of three chopped “bowls” filled with an assortment of veggies and fruits
Image description 3: a photo of corn tortillas being heated on the stove and a chicken and opo squash taco seasoning on a skillet on the side
Image description 4: a photo of yellow watermelons being cut up and a zucchini bread on the side
Image description 5: a photo of all the dishes made: pasta, tacos, chili, salsa, corn bread, zucchini bread, brownies
Image description 6: a photo of two instructors holding a bag of ingredients looking mischievous and smiling at the camera]](https://scontent-den2-1.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.82787-15/565190164_17919020904179527_6368929636388227338_n.jpg?stp=dst-jpg_e35_tt6&_nc_cat=107&ccb=7-5&_nc_sid=18de74&efg=eyJlZmdfdGFnIjoiQ0FST1VTRUxfSVRFTS5iZXN0X2ltYWdlX3VybGdlbi5DMyJ9&_nc_ohc=9KbeJuyDG2EQ7kNvwG5kSDj&_nc_oc=AdojpG4Xvh62DT5Wlp9JP13vzqqk50mxKbo9t_GuGSFGXbtMzh9VTm9McNR9BTGrer8&_nc_zt=23&_nc_ht=scontent-den2-1.cdninstagram.com&edm=ANo9K5cEAAAA&_nc_gid=yACEFBWhwQDG20EqTUHuHg&_nc_tpa=Q5bMBQLhmrtAbe2YZF8dptxLuE5BHoAcu9Z59huNZCnl4vb03uWfYfcPIdsudB344hVF1HsZKU9BoXys&oh=00_AQSZhrzC-hf_Sfbp4HEcaGXQFnxryZ5-uiRU0gh1g6FW_w&oe=6AF7C541)
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