Vol. 74/No. 34      September 6, 2010

In 1999 Latino farmers and ranchers launched a lawsuit now known as Garcia v. Vilsack against the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The suit documents discrimination by the USDA and other government farm agencies. The meeting here is part of a national tour to promote the case.

Among greater obstacles Latino farmers face compared to white farmers are: denial or delay of loans, restrictions on access to loan money, and being granted loans and then told there is no money available.

“It’s about a group of individuals who have solely been discriminated against because of their skin color, their last name, or their accent,” Rio Grande farmer David Cantu, who participated in the meeting, told the press.

Although the courts denied the farmers class action status, the judge granted a stay on the time limit that farmers have to sue the government, Stephen Hill, the lead attorney for farmers suing the U.S. government, told the Militant.

“We know that at any time the judge could remove that stay and then farmers would have just eight days to join Garcia v. Vilsack or file their own,” he said.

Hill and Cantu both noted that among those supporting their efforts is Timothy Pigford, a Black farmer who spearheaded an earlier lawsuit fighting USDA racism and discrimination against farmers who are Black.

In May, the Barack Obama administration offered $1.33 billion to settle the Latino farmers’ lawsuit and a similar one brought by women farmers. Many farmers say that is inadequate given the large number of those who have faced discrimination.

Farmer Modesta Salazar told the press at a July 9 protest in Las Cruces, New Mexico, “Right now, what they’re offering wouldn’t even buy me beans.”  
 
 
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