John W. Boyd, President of the National Black Farmers Association, released a statement condemning President Joe Biden for withdrawing his support for Black farmers.
Congress is close to rolling back the Emergency Relief for Farmers of Color, a debt relief program that provides aid to farmers of color. The legislation was passed and signed into law by President Joe Biden last March in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. Two months later, a group of white American farmers sued the government for race-based discrimination.
The group alleged that the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) loan forgiveness program for farmers of color violates the Constitution. Boyd believes the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (Section 22008) repeals the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Section 1005.)
“I’m very, very disappointed in this legislative action,” Boyd said in response to reading the final bill passed by the Senate. “I’m prepared to fight for debt relief for Black, Native American and other farmers of color all the way to the Supreme Court. I’m not going to stop fighting this.”
“Discrimination at USDA against Black Farmers was rampant and severe. Section 1005 Loan Repayment program was a necessary step towards fixing those harms. To acknowledge and correct racism is not unconstitutional or racist.”
The Guardian reports that as of April 2019, there are roughly 45,500 Black farmers. This number accounts for just 1.3% of the population. Those farmers own just 0.52% of farmland in the country and make less than $40,000 a year (compared to white farmers who make over $190,000).
Under USDA’s debt relief program, Black, Native American, Alaskan Native, Asian American, Pacific Islander, and Hispanic and Latino farmers qualified for payments of up to 120% of their outstanding USDA loans. The loan also covered any taxes owed on the loans.
Not everybody views the new bill as a revocation of Biden’s pledge last year to support Black farmers.
Sen. Cory Booker told The Hill he was excited the new bill “clarifies and reappropriates this funding from the American Rescue Plan.”
“By giving USDA the authority to modify debt for distressed borrowers, we will keep family farmers around the country on their farms. For those farmers, particularly Black farmers, who have suffered USDA discrimination, this legislation sets in motion a process to right those wrongs,” he said.
