As they set down new roots in America, refugee farmers are feeding the local economy and filling a gap in neighborhoods with few or no places to purchase fresh produce.
By Eugenia Gusev
Under the blazing summer heat, in an empty lot on Michie Drive in Charlottesville, Virginia, a small miracle happens every Saturday afternoon when this empty space is transformed into a bustling marketplace. Cars pull up and farmers start to set up colorful produce stands. Tents are unfurled and then crates full of fresh greens, plump tomatoes, shiny purple eggplants and succulent ground cherries are set upon shelves.