Kia Damon is a food truck chef, executive chef, IGTV personality, and founder of the Kia Feeds the People Program , a non-profit organization that partners with farmers, distributors, and food manufacturers to provide free produce boxes and Pantry items. Brooklynites who struggle to access affordable, healthy meals. Behind the scenes, however, Damon is navigating her relationship with food and health amid the pandemic and ongoing Black Lives Matter protests.
Bustle spoke with Damon, 26, about how her understanding of the hospitality industry has changed during this tumultuous season.
The relationship between food and me is very subtle. In a professional sense, I love it. I can use my imagination. Manipulate it. Use it to bring a smile to people's faces. In my personal life, I have struggled with body image and IBS, so I am constantly trying to find a healthy relationship with myself through my diet. In that respect, being a chef is so hard.
I started hating food during quarantine because everything made my stomach hurt. #WhatsUpWithKiasGut is a candid Instagram post about my experience with IBS, designed to document what I put into my body. I don’t say this with the restrictive thinking that comes with health and diet fads, but as someone who loves ice cream and knows that maybe I shouldn’t eat it. It's not always what is considered "junk food" that hurts my stomach - sometimes it's pasta or a vegetable. Sometimes that's the pressure, no matter what's on my plate. I've gotten used to paying more attention to digestion and feeling liberated by learning new ways to eat while listening to my body.
I can't overturn the entire racist system that ensures the only way to buy groceries in the neighborhood is from the corner store, and I definitely can't do that overnight.
Assessing my health during quarantine doesn't mean I suddenly have the ability to cook all day, but I do try to use what I already have in the pantry instead of takeout. When preparing meals, I take special care to make sure nothing goes to waste, such as turning scraps and carcasses into vegetables and chicken stock. This resourcefulness is a key component of what I call “Struggle Meals,” which is all about repurposing things you already have in the refrigerator—it’s the epitome of “we have food in our house.” You can make something out of anything.
It is with this mindset that I view food through a political lens. I make sure my employees are well-fed while fighting on the front lines. I spent a few days riding bikes with my friends directly to eat at black people and QTPOC protesters. Now, I'm working on reviving my "Out of Nowhere Supper Club" and launching the "Kia Feeds the People Initiative" in hopes of combating food apartheid in downtown Brooklyn and surrounding areas. I can't overturn the entire racist system that ensures the only way to buy groceries in the neighborhood is from the corner store, and I definitely can't do that overnight. All I can do is make sure black people get boxes of quality produce. Currently, I hope to deliver once a month, but with enough funds and manpower, we could deliver twice a month. I’ve also been reading up on the Black Panther Party’s free breakfast program and keeping up with the latest initiatives some of my peers are taking. I thought a lot about my anxiety, but also about what it means to be in this line of work.
This is hospitality. We have to serve our people, serve our communities, and while that can be a challenging job, I realize it doesn't have to kill me. Much of this work has been done before and is now being done by fellow activist farmers and chefs. I feel lucky to follow in their footsteps and arm myself with the knowledge to carry the torch. Knowledge has a self-protective effect.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
