The 1997 agriculture census revealed a
significant increase in Black farmers in the13 of the 18 Georgia counties
in which the Federation is offering technical assistance - an increase
that could not have happened by chance. Clearly, as indicated in this report,
providing information and technical assistance to farmers makes a difference
in the livelihood of individual farmers and the communities where they
reside. The Federation/LAF, now in its 33rd year, assists Black family
farmers across the South with farm management, debt restructuring, alternative
crop suggestions, marketing expertise and a whole range of services to
ensure family farm survivability.
(Excerpts from report)
In 1969, it was predicted that by the year
2000, there would be no Black-owned land in America. At that time, blacks
owned six million acres, but were losing land at an annual rate of over
300,000 acres. In 1982 the US Commission on Civil Rights published a report
stating that the primary reason Blacks have lost land is because of the
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) itself. The 1982 report
confirmed what was already legendary - that assistance provided by the
USDA Extension Services throughout the country has often been denied minority
farmers resulting in tragic consequences for family farmers and their communities.
After extensive coalition building and
strong advocacy efforts, this injustice was partially rectified by the
passage of the Minority Farmer Rights Act (Section 2501) entitled the "Outreach
and Technical Assistance Program for Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and
Ranchers", which was incorporated into the 1990 Farm Bill. While Congress
approved an annual budget of $10 million for Section 2501 it has yet to
appropriate an average of $3 million since its passage - find which are
distributed between land grant colleges and community based organization.
With the passage and implementation of
this legislation, 1890 "Black" Land Grant Colleges and community-based
organizations (CBOs) have been able to implement a comprehensive, technical
assistance program to help farmers develop a holistic approach to farming
that helps make farming more profitable and improves the quality of life
for entire communities.
The 2501 outreach program to farmers has
made a considerable and positive impact on Black farmer survival, which
is indicated by the 1997 agriculture census.
Studies have found that the agriculture
census is not necessarily an accurate reflection of the total number of
Black farmers, in fact, there are probably more Black farmers than indicated
in the census. Still, this five-year census report it is our best measurement
over time.
While the Federation offers technical assistance
to farmers from its offices in South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi,
our 2501 project in Georgia is our oldest and largest. To date, we have
18 Georgia counties in the project. The 1997 census states there are 1,175
Black farmers in Georgia of which 328 or 28% reside in our eighteen 2501
counties.
In Georgia, 111 counties reported a population
of Black farmers. Statewide, from 1992 to 1997, there was an increase of
95 Black farmers. In the 18 counties in our 2501 project there was an actual
increase of 66 Black farmers in 13 of those counties. Interestingly, the
increase in our 2501 Georgia project, then, represents 73% of the increase
in Black farmers in the State of Georgia.
Given the above percentage changes, we
are very optimistic. As to what accounts for this optimistic trend, there
are perhaps many explanations. It is important to note that the 1997 census
was for the first time administered by the US Department of Agriculture
rather than the US Census Bureau. This change in the administering of the
census could be one factor. Perhaps the USDA encouraged more participation
by farmers in the census. But the above analysis seems to indicate there
might be something else impacting on the Black farmer community.
The 73 percent increase of Black farmers
in Georgia occurring 13 counties is not likely to have happened by chance.
It is in these counties where there has been a long and sustained outreach
effort through the Federation's 2501 technical assistance project. Given
this, it seems fairly clear that when services, information and technical
assistance are provided to farmers and their community there will be a
positive response.
Our initial findings from the 1997 census
indicate that 2501 has been successful in fulfilling it's mandate of providing
services to Black farmers. It is therefore imperative that 2501 remain
an integral part of the USDA's outreach effort and be adequately and permanently
funded by Congress.
In 1997, under the direction of Agriculture
Secretary Dan Glickman and Assistant Secretary for Administration, Pearlie
Reed, the USDA's Civil Rights Action Team (CRAT) held listening sessions
across the country which dramatically revealed the dismal record of racial
discrimination, neglect and abuses by the USDA. This led to the development
of 92 recommendations by CRAT to address these problems within the USDA.
The Civil Rights Action Team and Civil Rights Implementation Team work
is encouraging and we in the Federation welcome and support these courageous,
if long overdue, initiatives.
To adequately address the needs of Black
farmers and other underserved farmers, what's needed now is: (1) Full funding
($10 million) of the Section 2501 Outreach, Education and Technical Assistance
Program; (2) Full appropriation and targeting of FSA Farm Ownership and
Operating Loans (with emphasis on direct rather than guaranteed loans)
for people of color and limited resource farmers; (3) Equity in the selection
of farmer members of the Farm Service Agency controlled County Committees;
(4) Full implementation of all 92 CRAT recommendations; (5) Appropriation
of $10 million for the Cooperative Development Grants Program (formerly
Section2347 FACT).
While the latest Agricultural Census for
the first time this century revealed only slight decline in the overall
rate of African-American owned farm loss, in fact there was reported an
increase in some states. We believe these encouraging statistics are due
in large part to the work that CBO's and 1890 Land Grant Colleges have
able to accomplish under 2501 - an impact that could have been far greater
given the full funding of 2501. Finally, fully funding the 2501 Program
at the approved $10 million would be minuscule on the overall USDA budget,
yet its economic, social and political impact on Black America would be
almost immeasurable.
For more details on this article contact
Jerry Pennick or Heather Gray of the Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land
Assistance Fund at (404) 765 0991.