Sections 1005 and 1006 of the American Rescue Plan were widely hailed as a delayed legislative victory for black farmers, with The Washington Post describing the $ 4 billion debt relief program as the “most significant legislation for black farmers since the Civil Rights Act “.
Even opponents of the measure focused on its significance for the African American community: US Senator Lindsey Graham referred to aid as “reparations”, a term often associated with monetary compensation for the descendants of enslaved people.
(“He should be ashamed of himself,” US Representative James Clyburn told CNN in response, suggesting that his South Carolina colleague is familiar with the plight of black farmers.)
However, the word “negro” does not appear anywhere in the bill that addresses the old inequalities in agriculture. Instead, funding is reserved for “socially disadvantaged farmers, ranchers and forest landowners”, a group that includes “American Indians or Alaskan natives, Hispanics and Asians or Pacific Islanders”.
This broad definition concerns some defenders of black farmers. They want to ensure that black farmers, in particular, benefit from complementary research; education and outreach programs described in the law, since they were harmed exclusively by governmental prejudice.
In the past century, black farmers in the United States have lost approximately 90% of their properties. Although this statistic cannot be attributed to any factor, scholars estimate that discriminatory policies cost black farmers between $ 250 and $ 350 billion.
“There are loopholes created to simply take another pile of money and result in more disenfranchisement,” said Germaine Jenkins, co-founder and agricultural director of Fresh Future Farm in North Charleston and president of the SC Black Farmer Coalition. The Coalition on March 28 and 29 is hosting its third Annual Black Farmers Conference in SC, sponsored by Fresh Future Farm.
Jenkins continued: “I want to ensure that the waters do not become cloudy, so that the money allocated to those who have been harmed by anti-black racism is not collected.”
Black farmers will not be competing with other farmers for debt relief, according to a Congressional source familiar with the law, who forgives up to 120% of the value of loans granted or guaranteed by the United States Department of Agriculture. As long as farmers are eligible for the loan repayment, they will receive them.
But the USDA has not yet publicly disclosed how it intends to manage other elements of the program. A USDA representative did not return messages asking for comment.
“One thing we are interested in is ensuring that new farmers learn the ropes,” said Jenkins, the subject of a new documentary on the search for justice in the food sphere. “And college is not the only way: I learned from a black elder. He was able to tell me all the roadblocks. The coalition provided its feedback, so I hope it is still under discussion. ”
Representatives of the Clyburn press and US Senator Raphael Warnock, who introduced the Emergency Aid Act for Colored Farmers, also did not respond when asked how the legislation would specifically help black farmers.
Regarding the perception that black Americans are overlooked when the feds distribute money, a deep impression of the failures in the first round of the Payment Protection Program, cultural sociologist Ellen Berrey said there is little data on the subject.
“The separate parts of the government can be very difficult to study because there are so many different types and they are not well monitored,” said Berrey, author of The Enigma of Diversity: The Language of Race and the Limits of Racial Justice.
Still, advocates of justice for black farmers emphasize that the stimulus package is just a start. US Senator Cory Booker said at a news conference: “This is our first step. We must provide more access to credit and land for those farmers who have suffered this long history of miserable and painful discrimination. “
Booker reiterated his commitment to enact the entire Black Farmers Justice Act, which would establish land grants for black farmers and create a civil rights oversight board within the USDA, among other measures.
In South Carolina, Rep. JA Moore this session introduced the Black Farmer’s Restoration Program. According to his program, black farmers who found land they wanted to buy could apply to the state for a concession to buy it.
“I wanted to be very specific about the language of the project,” said Moore. “This is specifically for blacks of African descent: this is not a restoration of minorities. This legislation is about people brought here during slavery (who) have been disproportionately discriminated against. “
He added: “I didn’t want to be nuanced. I wanted to be clear. “
Moore’s project went nowhere in the House, which is the result he anticipated. He said that some colleagues considered this too radical, an accusation that Moore disputes: He points out that land grants were fundamental to the development of the midwest and western United States in the 19th century. Others were concerned with singling out a racial group.
“It doesn’t hurt farmers from other racial backgrounds,” said Moore. “I voted in favor of the agricultural bill and will continue to support all farms. This legislation goes a step further because we know that the percentage of African Americans who can gain access to funds to start farms is minimal, at best, and blatant, at worst. “
By facilitating the creation of new farms, said Moore, South Carolina would increase its supply of locally grown food, which he characterizes as an economic and environmental victory for the state.
However, Moore recognizes that the proposed legislation is “unprecedented”.
Other states, including Mississippi and Hawaii, have taken over farmers’ stock accounts, but there are no land grant programs for black farmers. State legislatures are more inclined to consider resolutions calling on agriculture departments to address the issue, such as those recently introduced in Illinois and Michigan.
What Moore wanted most was to start a conversation. Now that he has entered the project, he said he has a starting point for discussions with the SC Department of Agriculture and the South Carolina Department of Farms: “This was the first step in a longer process. We are talking about 450 years of discrimination ”.
One account, said Moore, is not going to fix it.
To reach Hanna Raskin at 843-937-5560 and follow her on Twitter @hannaraskin.