The Biden administration has distributed over $2 billion in direct payments to Black and other minority farmers who were discriminated against by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, as recently announced by the president.
According to the USDA, more than 23,000 farmers were approved for payments ranging from $10,000 to $500,000. Additionally, another 20,000 individuals who intended to start a farm but did not receive a USDA loan were granted between $3,500 and $6,000.
A large portion of the payments went to farmers in Mississippi and Alabama.
USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack stated that the aid “is not compensation for any specific loss or hardship endured, but rather an acknowledgment by the department.”
The USDA has a history of denying loans to Black farmers, approving smaller loans for them compared to white farmers, and quickening the foreclosure process in certain cases.
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John Boyd Jr., Founder and President of the National Black Farmers Association, noted that while the aid is beneficial, it is not sufficient. Boyd compared it to “putting a bandage on someone who needs open-heart surgery.”
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