A Privileged Dilemma

Between snow days and birthdays and baking crazy three layer cakes, it's been a bit hectic over here at Monday Night Central. I could regale you about all the phenomenal things I've been cooking, but the truth is, it hasn't much of a week for cooking.

Yesterday we celebrated my son's birthday with a trip to a favorite Mexican restaurant and then to a local ice cream shop. Even a state of emergency could not prevent us from getting his anticipated birthday ice cream (a sugar cone filled with cookies & cream and topped with rainbow sprinkles!). And while the chilly, snowy weather has me aching for some hot soup (who knows, I'll probably whip something up tonight...I've certainly neglected the poor soup-a-long enough), for now, all I have to offer you is a radio interview.

A friend posted a link to a Canadian radio show that features an interview "debate" between Anthony Bourdain and Jonathan Safran Foer. Both men have strong viewpoints regarding food and what we eat, and sit on opposite sides of the spectrum for the most part

.

vs. 

Hm...hardly seems like a fair fight, eh?

This interview, which I feared could turn into a loud shouting match of catch phrases, ended up being an incredibly intelligent and thought provoking event. Anyone who knows Anthony Bourdain, knows that he's up for anything on a culinary level and in fact, even promotes the consumption of meat as a social norm. Jonathan Safran Foer, is on the complete opposite side of the coin, known best for his harsh critique of the meat industry in his book, Eating Animals.

While both men had excellent points on each side, what struck me more than the whole "meat vs vegetarian debate" was when Bourdain conceded that he has the luxury of choosing to eat meat that is not a part of the factory farm system. When you start talking about access versus choice, then you've stumbled into trickier water.

Like Bourdain, many of us have the luxury of making this choice - we can afford to practice an organic vegetarian diet or, like my family, eat a diet consisting of meat raised locally and humanely. Yet, especially in the "foodie world," it's easy to forget that not everyone has access to these choices. The fact that these two men can even have this debate reminds us of the social/economic implications surrounding food.

Bourdain makes mention that while he eats meat, he explicitly stays away from "The King, the Clown, and the Colonel" - referring to Burger King, McDonald's and KFC.

The reality is that there are many people for whom this diet is a daily reality. Safran Foer quickly made the point that you can easily provide a healthy vegetarian diet for comparable costs, yet I think he fails to see that access remains an issue.

I'm lucky enough to have the privilege to choose what I eat, and I wish everyone could say the same. Yet, that is not reality. In addition to having the privilege of choosing what I eat, I have access to information that helps me make these decisions...again, not everyone does.

This interview resonated deeply with me, because it brought to mind something I struggle with on a weekly basis. Once a week I head into a nearby city to tutor teen moms who are working towards their GEDs. These girls are wonderful - full of energy and excitement and many of them truly want to make their way to college and better their lives, for themselves and their babies.

While we pour over worksheets and practice questions, I find myself wondering how it's completely common place that a greasy bag from McDonald's is the standard breakfast, or that a bag of Twix and a stick of beef jerky constitutes lunch. After noticing the various food choices these girls made for a few weeks, I finally brought it up with them, asking about what goes into their decisions when it comes to food.

None of them had a real answer. Many of them cited money or ease of access to fast food. When I asked if any of them enjoyed cooking they all said they didn't really know how beyond some favorite fried food. These girls are right at the crux of the debate between Bourdain and Safran Foer, yet they're also invisible in this debate.

These are the people that should be given better access to food choice. These are the ones that should have a better understanding of where their food comes from and it's affect on them. Last week, after having yet another discussion about food, I approached the director of education of the program, asking if we could somehow find a way to offer a cooking class that focuses on easy, inexpensive and wholesome food.

There are plenty of obstacles in our way - from funding to actual kitchen access - but the seed in planted and we're hoping to figure out a way to make this a reality. Perhaps by getting these girls in the kitchen and allowing them hands on experience with food it will give them the opportunity to even fathom the choice the Bourdain and Safran Foer so easily debate.

Click here to read more and listen to the interview. In addition to the actual interview, the comments left by others are also incredibly enlightening and thought provoking.