BY NAOMI CRAINE
Farmers fighting to defend their land and against racist
discrimination by the U.S. government are organizing meetings
and a March 2 rally in Washington, D.C., to oppose the
consent decree the Clinton administration is trying to use to
end a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
"I do not believe that the proposed settlement agreement and consent decree equitably compensates our Black farmers," said Gary Grant, president of the Black Farmers and Agriculturalists Association (BFAA) from Tillery, North Carolina. Grant and his family have been fighting for more than 20 years to save their land from foreclosure.
Working farmers across the U.S. confront a growing crisis, as the prices they receive for the products of their labor drop, often below the cost of production. Many face foreclosure by the banks when they can't meet loan payments or obtain further credit to get through a rough period.
Among farmers who are Black, this process is greatly accelerated. In 1920, about 14 percent of farms in the United States were owned by Blacks; by 1992 the number was less than 1 percent. Hundreds of farmers filed complaints with the federal government over the last 15 years stating that they were routinely denied aid and loans that were granted to farmers who are white by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Over the last several years, farmers have been organizing protests and demanding government action to address this crisis. This included two lawsuits against the USDA and its director, Daniel Glickman, demanding redress for racist discrimination. In October 1998 they won a victory when a federal judge certified the plaintiffs in Pigford v. Glickman and Brewington v. Glickman as a class.
In an attempt to put a lid on this fight, the government, liberal big-business press, leaders of many civil rights organizations, and some union officials have been campaigning for these farmers to accept the consent decree signed by lawyers for the class-action suit and for the USDA. Under this deal, most Black farmers who provide some documentation of discrimination would receive from the USDA $50,000 - a small sum considering farmers' operating costs - and have their debts to the government agency canceled. A smaller group of farmers who provide extensive documentation can be awarded larger sums - or nothing at all - without recourse to appeal.
The deal is also supposed to put on hold USDA foreclosures against farmers whose bias claims are upheld. Glickman announced a similar temporary moratorium on foreclosures against farmers who are Black following a December 1996 farmers' rally outside the White House.
But Georgia farm leader Eddie Slaughter described how he is currently working with Carl Parker, a Black farmer from Ashburne, Georgia, whose 400-acre farm is supposed to be advertised for sale by the USDA February 1 in their attempt to foreclose on him.
"This is another of many foreclosures by the USDA in violation of their own rules," Slaughter pointed out. "Carl Parker's land had been protected before because he was in bankruptcy and he had filed a discrimination complaint. When the bankruptcy was lifted, the USDA pounced, even though there is supposedly a moratorium on foreclosures.
"Those good old boys in the USDA county office don't care what they say the policy is in Washington. And the USDA in Washington doesn't take any action against them.
"We're organizing a news conference next week and we're calling on churches, unions, and Black elected officials to protest this foreclosure," explained Slaughter, who is the vice president of the BFAA. "The consent decree is not aimed at restoration of Black farmers' land, but at eradication. We'll be in front of the courthouse in Washington March 2 to make that clear," Slaughter continued.
The BFAA announced several upcoming events in a news release issued January 28. These include a February 3 meeting at Howard University in Washington, D.C., sponsored by the Student Association, where Grant will speak on "40 acres and a mule! Black farmers fight to save their land - the battle against continuing discrimination by the U.S. Department of Agriculture."
It also announced the first national meeting of the Black Farmers and Agriculturalists Association, which will be held in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, Saturday, February 20. The conference will discuss and map out strategies against the continuing discrimination faced by Black farmers and landowners and the devastation caused to their families and communities.
The BFAA national meeting will take up plans for the rally in Washington, D.C. March 2 prior to the "fairness hearing" scheduled to finalize the consent decree. BFAA members are filing formal objections to the settlement before U.S. District Court Judge Paul Friedman.
For more information, contact the Black Farmers and Agriculturalists Association, P.O. Box 61, Tillery, North Carolina, 27887. Tel: (252) 826-3017.