Notre père, notre Terre

In Notre père, notre Terre, Maryse Legagneur examines the relationship with the land of Afro-Quebecers in her community. How does one come to terms with the land of the Americas when one’s ancestors were ripped out of Africa and reduced to mere “agricultural machinery”? After the sacrifices of blood and dignity made by previous generations, what, today, is the path toward reclaiming the land and taking root in it? Can the simple act of owning, farming, and harvesting land become a fertile healing gesture that allows people to rise above their situation? Revisiting the agricultural history of her own ancestors from the perspective of Afroecology, Legagneur strives to simultaneously nurture and embody a decolonized vision of ecology and agriculture by farming land in Québec’s Eastern Townships.