Support the African Community's Right to Genuine Economic Development and Good Health! Donate to the Uhuru Health Food Cooperative! Click here to read Just Building, the Uhuru Health Food Cooperative's weekly newsletter! Opening in St. Petersburg Florida in September The Uhuru Movement in St. Petersburg will open the Uhuru Health Food Cooperative Store, a 2,000 sq. ft. facility in September 1998! We are calling on everyone to help us realize this goal by donating money or selling raffle tickets. Objective conditions in St. Petersburg are ripe for instituting a community-driven development strategy that provides crucial goods and services through socially responsible business and community service enterprises. Well known is the history of abuse and exploitation forced on the African community by unresponsive and treacherous government agencies and an exploitive business community, drive solely by the profit-motive. In the face of a series of betrayals by the St. Petersburg city government, the Uhuru Movement took the lead in devising a community and economic development strategy. The four-part strategy outlined by Chairman Omali Yeshitela (See Burning Spear article, Seizing Control of Our Destiny), addresses the need for community-owned and operated commercial enterprises, health education and health service organizations, security and public safety apparatus, and community-controlled education institutions in the African community. The Uhuru Health Food Cooperative will be the first in a series of initiatives designed to increase community ownership and control of institutions vital to real development. Our objectives are: end the exploitation of the African community by foreign-owned grocery stores with high priced, low quality products, improve the health of the African community, strengthen the spirit of self-determination. To see its fruition, we must raise $30,000 to cover startup costs and provide working capital for the cooperative. Fundamental to our local fundraising and cooperative membership campaign is our conviction that directed energy and determination of the African working class will lead to our people's liberation. The cooperative is a first step in overturning a defeatist mindset, in creating wealth and income-generating capacity in the community, and in realigning the power relationships between the African community and its oppressors. To support the Uhuru Health Food Cooperative make out checks to: "Uhuru" and send to: Uhuru Health Food Cooperative 1245 18th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, Florida 33705. Email us @ apspuhuru@aol.com. For more information or to obtain raffle tickets, contact Gaida Kambon or Gypsy Gallardo at 813-821-6620 Return to Home Page Return to Current News