In an afternoon of community and local cuisine, the American Civic Association hosted Binghamton’s 21st-annual Garlic Festival at Recreation Park last Saturday.

Established in 1939, the ACA is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping immigrant and refugee communities establish themselves in the area without sacrificing their unique cultural and ethnic heritages.

Garlic farmers, craft vendors, food stalls and civic organizations set up tents in the park, while bands played live music. Families, students and other community members perused the festival’s offerings.

“The American Civic Association really does a great job in ensuring that every resident is not only recognized, but made to feel a part of our great and wonderful, diverse community that is in the Southern Tier,” State Sen. Lea Webb ‘04 said.

The festival features garlic due to its widespread use across cultures and cuisines. Vendors sold a diverse range of foods, including garlic ice cream, za’atar, pierogies and Indian and Caribbean food, in stalls with large selections.

“Most cultures use garlic,” Laila Hernandez ‘13, MPA ‘18, the deputy director of the ACA, said. “It’s our way to bring us together through that herb. More importantly, we know how difficult it is to navigate living here and being here, and we’re very proud of helping immigrants resettle into the community, or helping people adjust their statuses, legal-wise, or even directing them to services.”

According to Hernandez, the Garlic Festival is one of the organization’s largest fundraisers, helping to support the services that the association provides. This is particularly crucial in a year where federal funding has been cut for organizations with missions similar to the ACA.

“We have been resilient,” Hussein Adams, executive director of the ACA, said. “When our federal funding got cut in January, we immediately established additional programs where we can receive funding through New York state to start programs that would support these vulnerable populations.”

Besides helping raise necessary funds for immigrant and refugee communities, the Garlic Festival was an opportunity for family farmers to display and sell their products. Greg Parsons of Screaming Fox Garlic Farm in Rushville, New York sold three varieties of garlic — German White, Chesnok Red and German Red.

Parsons compared the garlic typically sold in supermarkets to the garlic he sells.

“If you look, it’s either from California, Mexico, China, sometimes it’s out of Canada,” Parsons said. “Usually that’s a soft neck. And my personal opinion is that it doesn’t have the flavor that the hard neck garlic that we grow here in New York [has].”

Music also tied the festival together, with artists across cultures and genres performing. Nadaya Petchenyi opened with Ukrainian music, while later performers like The Supreme Soup played hip-hop. Peter Stewart of Binghamton-based rock band Green Creeks, which played at Porchfest the following day, hit the stage as well.

“It brings joy just seeing the community come together, seeing the community with different backgrounds come together and enjoy themselves on one platform,” Adams said. “The American Civic Association being the organization that is hosting speaks volumes for what we do as an organization.”