By Jean West Rudnicki
SLOW FOOD
In 1986, as the rest of the world rushed frantically about its business,
gulping down Big Macs on the fly – two all-beef patties, special sauce,
lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun – a small group
of Italian foodies led by culinary writer Carlo Petrini, armed themselves
with bowls of penne pasta doused in marinara sauce and took to the
streets of Rome in protest against the opening of McDonald’s beside
the historic city’s famed Spanish Steps.
It was one affront the gourmet group just could not stomach, so
to speak. The renegade Italians fought back against the gigantic
quintessence of everything they found wrong with the fast food/fast life
world. Outside the Golden Arches these pasta-armed rebels, tongue in
cheek, called their humble dish, “Slow Food,” and offered it to passersby
as a savory alternative in a gastronomic showdown with the Big Mac.
Though no one realized it at the time, the little demonstration was a
first attempt to slam the brakes on our time-sick, run-away world.
Three years later, Slow Food, which adopted the little snail as its
symbol, became official as delegates from 15 countries endorsed its
manifesto which proclaimed, in part, “We are enslaved by speed and
have all succumbed to the same insidious virus: Fast Life.” Homo
sapiens, it decreed, must rid themselves of speed or face danger of
extinction.
 Slow Food identifies itself as an eco-gastronomic organization.
Their mission is to counteract fast food and fast life, the disappearance
of local food traditions, and people’s dwindling interest in the food they
eat, where it comes from, how it tastes, and how our food choices affect
the rest of the world. The organization supports fresh, local, seasonal
produce; recipes handed down through generations; sustainable
farming; artisanal production, and leisurely dining with family and
friends, not to mention the pleasure so derived. It boasts a membership
of 85,000 in 132 countries.
In 2001, The New York Times Magazine named Slow Food as one of
the "80 ideas that shook the world (or at least jostled it a little)," and
in January 2008, Carlo Petrini was named by British newspaper, The
Guardian, as one of the "Top 50 People Who Can Save the Planet."
Slow Food, with its emphasis on easing up and reconnecting, set the
stage and agenda, ushering in the all-encompassing Slow Movement.
Slow is no longer confined to the kitchen or dinner table, but now
includes every slice of life. Today we find Slow Cities, Slow Travel, Slow
Design, Slow Schools, Slow Home, even Slow Work. Organizations and
websites abound. The Society for the Deceleration of Time, with 700
members, conducts research, publishes papers and organizes symposia.
The Long Now Foundation promotes long-term thinking, striving
to provide a counterpoint to today’s "faster/cheaper" mindset and
promotes "slower/better" thinking; slowLab is a network of designers,
architects, and artists who employ a slow, holistic approach to creative
thinking, process and outcome. Websites such as SlowMovement.
com, SlowDownNow.com, and SlowPlanet.com, help time-bedraggled
refugees come to terms with, and begin to implement a slower, more
relaxed pace.
The "slow" of the Slow Movement, however, is not time-based;
it is a philosophy, a way of life. Author Carl Honoré, In Praise of
Slowness, sums up the movement in one word: balance. He writes that
"despite what some critics say, the Slow Movement is not about doing
everything at a snail’s pace…On the contrary, the movement is made
up of people…who want to live better in a fast-paced, modern world…
Be fast when it makes sense to be fast, and be slow when slowness is
called for. Seek to live at what musicians call the tempo giusto – the
right speed."
Slow Living
The movement is about re-establishing connections to the things
that once added value to our lives – friends, family, and community.
While we are often quick to give lip service, it is these very things that
we sacrifice and shove aside as we
speed through life racing to complete
the endless must-do lists.
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