Rose Hayden-Smith: Lincolnesque Vision Needed for USDA People's Gardens

Recently, to mark the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln's birthday, Agricultural Secretary Tom Vilsack broke ground on The People's Garden at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In his speech, Secretary Vilsack set a goal of creating a community garden at every USDA site in the world. It is fitting that the USDA should choose to honor President Lincoln through the creation of a People's Garden. When Lincoln established the USDA in 1862, at a time when more than half the population of the country was involved in agriculture, he referred to it as "The People's Department." It's a description that is as true today as it was then. What has always moved me to tears about Lincoln's legislative work in 1862 is the breathtaking optimism required to be able to envision and enact it. 1862 was a year when the success of Union forces was mixed at best. In May, Union troops were forced to retreat across the Potomac to protect Washington, D.C. In August, about 10,000 of the 62,000 Union soldiers fighting were ... (link)