Fixed Price Menu
A culinary arts installation
Jeronimo Yanez grew up in Saint Paul, MN and was eight years old when he first had the thought that he would like to be a police officer. His dream was to protect and serve his community. At 19 years old, Philando Castile had just graduated from high school and decided to begin working in the cafeterias of Saint Paul Public Schools. For fourteen years he protected and served the school children put in his care.
On July 16, 2016, Officer Yanez, conducting a traffic stop, pulled over Mr. Castile in his car for a broken taillight. Seventy-two seconds later, Philando had been shot 7 times by Jeronimo. Jeronimo was 29 and Philando was 32.
It was revealed that in his lifetime, Philando had been stopped by police over 40 times. It turns out that one of those times, 5 years before he was killed, Philando and Jeronimo had crossed paths. In that instance, also under the premise of a broken tail light. This made me wonder how close their lives actually were as they grew up within miles of one another.
To dissect this case through the lens of culinary arts I wonder, what culture did Jeronimo feed from that would allow him to take a life so swiftly? What has been served in this instance? Not protection. Not justice.
This conceptual menu and its presentation explored how these lives, so close in proximity, both had instincts at a young age to protect and serve, but the intersection of their lives ended with one killing the other.
We set the table for two and explored who we needed Jeronimo to be in that moment through community nourishment.
The navy blue tablecloth on Jeronimo’s side of the table is made from police uniform shirts. This references the “blue line” of loyalty amongst police officers. The blue line also dictates that no cop shall ever testify against another. Pieces of the shirts bleed over to Philando’s side of the table referencing the overreaching of the “blue line”. At the end of each extended piece is a bullet, seven total, the number Jeronimo shot at Philando.
The meal, only present on Jeronimo’s plate, is composed of a chia seed and hibiscus cooler that uplifts respect and hospitality. A spiced black eyed pea spread and teff crackers to acknowledge and honor shared humanity. A steak and collard stew with skillet cornbread, Philando’s favorite foods, to insist that Jeronimo experience Philando's perspective.
Seventeen silver plates stacked to the right of Jeronimo’s place setting are printed with names of systemic co-conspirators. Especially the people within the legal system who did not hold Jeronimo accountable and instead allowed him to live free. This number includes his wife Lyndsay Engstrom, the 12 jurors, Saint Anthony Police Chief Jon Mangseth, his partner Officer Joseph Kauser, Judge Leary, & Defense Attorney Tom Kelley who is currently representing George Floyd’s killers. It may seem odd to hold jurors responsible, but I include them here because jurors hold final responsibility for holding Jeronimo and other officers responsible. Don’t ever give in, hang the jury if you have to.
The silver place setting is a mirror to force Jeronimo to see himself and his actions more clearly. It also references the silver badge that acts as a shield as he operates with impunity.
Dessert is a red velvet cupcake partially deconstructed into its ingredients. This cupcake recipe is made specifically to represent the possibility of accountability when made whole. But if it continues to fall apart, the consequence to our society from continued police brutality is immeasurable.
Two times, 2011 and 2016, Jeronimo said Philando was stopped for a broken tail light which is represented on the table as the centerpiece made from red tail lights.These shattered red shards tear into the visual of the tablescape like the 10 deadly wounds Jeronimo made that night.
Philando’s place setting is a square wooden plate reminiscent of the lunchroom trays from his work. Notice that where Jeronimo’s place setting is entirely metal, Philando’s is primarily wood. This was done as an intentional contrast of killer and killed.
“Mr. Phil's Recipes" is carved into the recipe box beside Philando’s plate. Set into the inside top of the lid is Leila’s drawing for Mr. Phil. Leila was a student at Philando’s school. She drew and wrote this note to him after he died. Inside the box are hundreds of recipe cards representing the hundreds of children Philando nurtured, and paid many of their meal plan fees during his fourteen years working in St. Paul school cafeterias, ensuring they were all fed.
One recipe card is on the table to the right of the box that has “Yanez's Child” handwritten on it. This is the recipe for the Red Velvet Cupcake dessert. The cupcake is created with beets as a reference to “Mr. Phil” often encouraging the children to eat their vegetables to stay strong. The hope is that Yanez’s child will be nurtured by carrying the humanity of this plate using it to feed her future choices.
When we think about Jeronimo Yanez I want us to always remember that he took a vibrant and beautiful life. The floral centerpiece with fruits and vegetables surrounding it reflects that life that was taken. A life spent sharing food with his family and community. A life that made a lasting and generative impression. The abundance of the centerpiece and colorful tablecloth are purposefully a stark contrast to the emptiness of Philando’s plate which represents his life being taken.
On the back of the metal chair hangs a standard police officer duty jacket to hold Jeronimo’s space at the table. On Philando’s side of the table the chair there is draped with his uniform, a royal blue chefs jacket. Alongside it is his red lanyard. In life it read, "Choose to Live Well - Ask Me Why". This uniform might look familiar to you. The most popular photo of Philando after he was murdered is of him wearing this uniform and lanyard.
As an artist, my first love was quilt making. Before I even knew how significant of a tradition it is to the Black community, I was drawn to the testimony made by the textures, shapes, colors, and lines. They felt inherently empowered by story and possibility. They felt touched by caring hands speaking through time. I knew quilting needed to be a part of this story. I made both sides of the tablecloth using different appliqué techniques. The richly patterned wax cloth on Philando’s side refers to his African heritage that holds him close even in death. The deconstructed navy polyester police shirts on Jeronimo’s side denote all the cops that surrounded and protected him, the light blue shirt in the center, from being held accountable.
The Recipes
On March 4, 2021, we gathered to prepare two recipes from Fixed Price Menu: a Hibiscus and Chia Cooler and Spiced Black Eyed Pea Spread with Teff Crackers.
Fixed Price Menu was a culinary arts installation for the Law Enforcement Action Project (LEAP Action) and commissioned by Array Alliance. LEAP is the Law Enforcement Accountability Project—a propulsive fund dedicated to empowering activists as they pursue narrative change around the police abuse of Black People.
Acknowledgments
Contributing Artists - A powerful circle of Black women and femmes
Frances Calloway Jackson has devoted her career to education and leadership in the areas of citizen participation, community activism, and service on behalf of youth and other vulnerable groups that are victimized by poverty and discrimination. In 2015, Frances was the first African American woman to run for Mayor of the city of Wichita, KS. As Queen Mother of the Council of Elders and mother to four children and six grandchildren, she believes it is important for elders to be living examples to younger generations of civic leadership. Presently she serves as the State Secretary for the Kansas Democratic Party. She also taught her daughter Jocelyn how to cook and sew and love.
Ayana Ivery knew at a young age that she loved design and creating beautiful information. Living in Southern France, the Denver Rockies and the Silicon Valley have influenced her decision to reside in the Bay Area of California. Always approaching life with a vibrant color palette, Ayana Ivery sees life in beautiful hues. As a visual designer, she is driven by curating experiences with graphic design, art, and technology. Within the intersection of art and technology, Ayana creates dynamic user-focused experiences through events, digital design, and installations.
Powered by a belief that the source of all human connection is in our personal stories; Deneishia Jacobpito honors the shared human history of nomadic campfire style storytelling using the modalities of fiction, poetry, song, ritual, film, and community connection to assist people in healing through their personal and societal trauma. Reaching deeply into her experiences, Deneishia is a master of creating physical and virtual sacred safespace by building community through story.
Lance L. Smith is a multidisciplinary artist, illustrator, and teacher based in Las Vegas, NV. Their work often explores themes of loss, distortion, and liberatory practices.
Consultants
Lindsay Oda (she/her) is a mutual aid cook, small business consultant, and doula in training based on Ohlone land in Oakland, California. Her work affirms the dignity of all people to determine the health care and nourishment they need.
Born in the U.S. of Indian farmers from East Africa, Saqib Keval’s food is an act of love, grounded in history, and conveyed through flavor and craft. His work as a chef, researcher, and activist is reflected in his diverse menus and rich flavors. He started the People’s Kitchen Collective—a food, art, and social justice chef’s collective—to create good food spaces accessible to marginalized people.
Sita Kuratomi Bhaumik is an artist, writer, and educator who uses art as a strategy to connect memory and history with the urgent social issues of our time. South Asian and Japanese Latin American, Sita was born and raised in Los Angeles, Tongva Land, and is based in Oakland, Ohlone Land.