Polar Opposites at the Farmer's Market

Cities are notable for being spaces of conflict and hashing out differences. This notion reminded me of a morning that occurred fairly recently. There was one weekend this summer while I was living in Clemson and working in Greenville that my parents decided to drive up from the slow lifestyle of the Lowcountry region of South Carolina (I know this is ironic after the Murdaugh trial but hear me out) for a visit in June.

I took my parents to Greenville on a Saturday morning. I knew Main Street would be poppin' because of their always popular Farmer's Market, but what I didn't expect were the events happening on each ends of the Market.

On one end of the market was the beginning of an abortion-rights protest where hundreds began chanting and rallying in protest of the Supreme Court ruling that ended Americans' constitutional right to abortion. This took place at ONE City Plaza, a public space among the shops and restaurants that Greenville usually boasts that on any given day you'll see a lone saxophonist playing smooth jazz or a trio singing the latest hits. It's a fantastic place to sit down, meet people (or just do some people-watching), and watch all of the hustle and bustle of Main Street.

The other end of the market was a more celebratory event, the Upstate Pride Parade. The environment was obviously more lively and joyful as the participants were there to acknowledge and celebrate equal rights for the LGBTQ+ community. While pride parades tend to be more fun and joyous now, they began as pride marches in the streets of cities in the 1970s where activists demonstrated for legal rights that were not granted. 

These different events of conflict or previous conflict occurred in the streets between the informal community-driven urban architecture that is the farmers market. On that morning, the city and urban fabric of Greenville became an space of conflict where unexpected discourse with my parents about the current times occurred, something that wouldn't have happened during a weekend visit to their quiet 55+ community back home.