Black Soil Rising brings Alabama land fight to Climate Week in NYC

A Black family’s fight over ancestral land and oil extraction in Alabama is heading to New York City Climate Week on Sept. 26. The event will pair a film update, panel and community gathering to spotlight land, health and wealth issues tied to fossil-fuel development.

Why it matters: - The Johnson family’s fight in Conecuh County, Alabama, puts land ownership, environmental health and generational wealth at the center of a climate conversation. - The Climate Week event aims to connect a rural frontline struggle to a global audience focused on fossil fuels and climate justice. - The program is designed to turn a family story into a broader organizing, research and legal effort around accountability.

What happened: - Energy Justice Law & Policy Center and the Movement for Black Lives’ Black Hive will host “From Big Oil to Black Futures” on Saturday, Sept. 26, in Manhattan. - The event will run from 5:30 to 7:15 p.m. at 38 W. 39th St. in New York City. - The program builds on the documentary Black Soil Rising, which follows the Johnson family’s fight to protect land held by the family for roughly 150 years. - The land sits inside Alabama’s largest producing oil field.

The details: - The event will include film, conversation, food, performances and community programming. - The evening will premiere an update showing what has happened since the original film and introduce people now working with the family. - Raya Salter, an environmental justice attorney, filmmaker, founder and executive director of EJLPC, and a Johnson family member, leads the campaign and will moderate the conversation. - The work behind Black Soil Rising: Uphold Roots includes research on oil extraction, ownership, consent and compensation. - The campaign also includes a developing community environmental health study, legal and regulatory work, and ongoing family and community organizing in Alabama. - The panel will include Dr. Sacoby Wilson of CEEJH INC, Diamond Spratling of Girl Plus Environment, Willie Neal Johnson, and Jermaine Williams. - The event will invite participants into an immersive experience centered on the home and Alabama farm. - The program is part of a full day of free activities hosted by the Movement for Black Lives. - RSVP information is available here. - More information on the campaign is available at BlackSoilDoc.com. - More information on EJLPC is available at EJLPC.org.

Between the lines: - The event reframes Climate Week around a specific frontline case rather than an abstract discussion of “Black futures.” - Salter said the fight is about land control, who benefits from extraction, whose health bears the costs and what is passed to the next generation. - The mix of film, testimony, research and organizing suggests the campaign is trying to build public pressure as well as legal and scientific records.

What's next: - The September 26 gathering will serve as a public update on the campaign and a recruitment point for people who want to support the family’s work. - The Johnson family’s next phase includes continued investigation, health research, legal support and community organizing.