“This Is Food That Just Touched My Soul…”

Soul food is a strong and powerful staple in African American families. It is the basis of black culture, it’s what has brought so many families together. With the recent Soul Food Sunday hosted at the Champion Miller center, food was able to bring students regardless of color all together.

“This is food that just touched my soul, I haven’t had good home cooking like this in so long. Food brings people together,” said Jonathan Diaz

The Champion Miller center started the weekend with the Men of Distinction retreat, inviting 4 men of color from Cornell to visit. The environment felt safe, good music was playing and students of color were able to be themselves and enjoy a home cooked meal.

“Out of all the years that the Champion Miller Center has hosted events, Soul Food Sunday had the largest attendance of students. We had a total of 60 participants,” Regina Johnson

Food consisted of brisket, baked chicken, collard greens and macaroni and cheese. These dishes formed the basis for Southern cuisine and “soul food,” an umbrella term used to describe Black people’s home cooking. The term soul food was embraced because it was a way “to talk about what we shared.”

Sanaia Jenkins - Contributing Writer