Farm Aid 2023: Reason for Hope

Last week I travelled to Noblesville, Indiana. Never heard of it? I hadn’t, either, but it was the site of this year’s Farm Aid, an annual music, food, and farm festival. As its website says, “Farm Aid is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to build a vibrant, family farm-centered system of agriculture in America.” Sophia, my wife, went for work: she runs a small non-profit whose whose mission is to create just food and agriculture systems. Curious about Farm Aid (and about Indianapolis, about thirty minutes away), I tagged along.

I had no idea what to expect. I’m pretty urban, and excepting the potatoes I managed to grow in my back yard a couple of times, to entrust plants to my care is to condemn them to quick and gloomy end.

What I found was reason for hope: in the crowd at the concert itself, which was overwhelmingly cheerful, and in the events surrounding the concert.

I talked to dozens of people: organizers, people who work for farm organizations, environmentalists, organic food proponents, farmers, people who believe that we can overcome the rural/urban divide in America, critics of unfettered capitalism. And saw many more:

And, of course, the concert itself, which featured some of the stalwarts (and board members) of Farm Aid: John Mellencamp, Neil Young, Dave Matthews, Margo Price—but also a surprise appearance by Bob Dylan. (You’ll find the rest of the lineup here.) These were engaged musicians, convinced that we can make the world a better place. Dave Matthews gave a rousing critique of injustice at the press conference; Neil Young exhorted the crowd to act; John Mellencamp reminded us that the struggle for healthy farms, the environment, justice, and equity has been going on for a long time.

It was exhilarating. And it gave me hope.