Race and community

Couldn't have said it better than Larry James, so here are his precise words, lifted from his blog at www.larryjamesurbandaily.blogspot.com. Hope he's ok with the lift I've done of his words.

Whenever I address the subject of race or racial prejudice here, I brace myself. I always get negative feedback, some of which suggests that I should leave the subject alone. The assumption of many of my critics is that race and racism are no longer problems in our society.

Oh, the bliss of wishful thinking.

Last week I attended the first few minutes of a seminar dealing with property values in neighborhoods as an index for determining "livability" or more comprehensive measures of community health. The presenters were accomplished academics, people who really knew their stuff. I'm sure the seminar was brilliant and full of at least some useful insights.

But, I left after the first twenty minutes.

One of the presenters made this statement about real estate values in South Dallas, "We controlled for many factors in our comparisons between this part of Dallas and other more affluent parts of the city. We were surprised to discover that race is still a significant factor affecting property values."

Say what?

"Surprised to discover that race is still a significant factor affecting property values"--are you kidding me? Anyone who is surprised by that fact of life in the inner city has just lost the ability to command my presence for the remainder of the presentation. Thus, my early departure.

Race and racism remain powerful forces and factors in the dynamics of life, economics, opportunity, hope and justice in every inner city in the United States.

The entire ugly reality reminded me of a story I ran across recently. It seems a white preacher visited a black congregation and, during his sermon, suggested that in heaven there must be a Jim Crow partition that separated the white saints on one side from the black saints on the other. At the end of the service, one of the church's deacons led the congregation in a closing prayer that went like this:

". . .O Lord, we thank thee for the brother preacher who has spoke to us,--we thank thee for heaven,--we thank thee that we kin all go to heaven,--but as to that partition, O Lord, we thank thee that we'se a shoutin' people--we thank thee that we kin shout so hard in heaven that we will break down that partition an' spread all over heaven,--an' we thank thee that if the white fokes can't stand it, they can git out of heaven an' go to elsewhere!"

I think the deacon knew more than the academic who came to town last week. How about you?

John Ficara is at it again...."Forty Acres and A Dream"

John Ficara is at it again. Previously, he published his perspectives of the plight of the Black farmer in book and video formats.

Now, two new releases, part I and part II of what you'll see below, reveal in a more in depth fashion the struggle of the Black farmer via the stories of people you'll see him interviewing.

What to do in the face of....

Three things have come together for me of late, no, make that four.

Several weeks back, a young, well-intentioned person said to me, "You are taking these things too personally." Something to the effect that these problems have been with us for a long time and they will be with us for a long time to come. I was a bit taken back, and surely in the midst of my reply was something like, "these things do matter; racism will be with us forever, but we must never, never give up." Would like to have that sound bite back.

Then, Darryl Fears, Washington Post Staff Writer, posted online an article entitled, "USDA is Called Lax on Bias." In that article, linked here for more detail, Lisa Shames of the GAO, reported before a House subcommittee that the information about resolution of Black farmers' claims being adjudicated could not be trusted. She goes on to say, according to the article, that she is preparing a report that will come out in the fall to support her testimony.

So, in essence, she's saying that the people charged with solving the problems relative to discrimination of the black farmers are sweeping things under the proverbial rug, my words, not hers.

Then, on Sunday at our church, the gentleman charged with giving a charge to the class of high school graduates encouraged the honorees with the following:

"I want us to live fearlessly."

"I want us to live dangerously."

"This life will cost you more than you could ever hope to save, so you might as well live extravagantly."

Check out that link above to read the full text that surrounds those words.

Couldn't have said it better. That podcast needs to be heard again and again.

Then, not long ago a student commented that he's learned over the last few months how the yearning for healing, and his calling by God to be a healer, can actually take place when we're moving beyond the therapy room to consider and to engage larger institutions. It's not an "either/or, but a both/and."

That, then, is my limited way of making those dots connect. The things we write on these pages are of grave importance. I do not want to become satisfied while things still need to be done.

"We Didn't Get Nothing:" The Plight of Black Farmers

The following article can be found at the web page for the Journal of African American Studies. Or, hopefully your local library can retrieve it for you at little to no cost. The piece lays out the historical context within which the current struggle for survival of the Black farmer is found. I'm indebted to Dr. Edward Robinson, professor at Abilene Christian University, for his support of this righteous cause. We'll write more about his works later this summer.

"Abstract The central thesis to this article is that blacks were intended to work the land, but never to own the land. The progression from working the land via slavery, to peonage, and to land ownership is explored. Africans arrived on American soil carrying with them a rich legacy in caring for the land, and while they did so in America, it was under the most onerous of conditions. Once freed, blacks became prodigious land owners, but with the onset of the twentieth century various systemic factors impacted landownership for blacks. These same factors along with mechanization, herbicides, government policy, and the courts all served to undermine farm ownership for black Americans. The Pigford Class Action Suit is central to understanding the complexities of the plight of the black farmer and the attempts of various advocacy groups to maintain black land ownership."

A Mother's Strugglin' on the Land

Two years ago while listening to stories of discrimination and land loss in interview after interview of farmers and families, lyrics came rushing out of me at 4:00 o'clock one morning. In those morning moments, these words came:

"There’s a storm cloud over Georgia,
There’s struggle on the land;
This lynchin’ and this stealin’,
It’s too hard to understand.

In the eyes of the Creator,
We are family, we are kin;
If love is still the answer,
Then where do we begin?"*

Back in those days of sitting around, singing, and jamming with students, I'd sing it and play it to the tune of John Denver's advocacy song, "It's About Time." You can also hear him sing that song at this link. It seemed to fit until the time came to work on a new arrangement.

After some serious and prayerful discussion, the young singer/songwriter said, "Dad, I can't sing those lines; they're not my story, but I can sing these." And he played his version of the song and his melody. Here are the first two stanzas.

"There's a storm cloud over Georgia,
A mother's strugglin' on the land.
Tales of tortured times,
All across this fabled land.

A sentence cast down from the Lord
Says we are brothers, 'n we are kin;
Someone says hope's the answer,
Knowing right where to begin."**

I'm especially struck by the line, "A mother's strugglin' on the land," because, indeed, that is what I was told. A man farms, a man who loves the land. A woman loves her husband, and she loves the land. She has sleepless night alongside his as they try to figure out how to keep what is their own. They both feel tortured. He works the land, and she also may work the land as well, and she's called upon to support her man in his uphill struggle for survival as a farmer.

So, my fine young son who is still learning of this righteous cause, you got it more right than you realized. And, on this mother's day in the year of our Lord 2008, my prayer is for relief for those mothers who are "strugglin' on the land," those mothers who have sons and daughters who are lost to farming because of what they saw their father and mother living through. And, my prayers are with the fathers who are likewise "strugglin' on the land." All are caught up in the struggle. Seldom are family members immune from the suffering that engulfs them all.

Someday soon, maybe we'll hear this song on iTunes.

*Words by Waymon Hinson
**Words by Waymon Hinson and Micah P. Hinson

A Gnat on an Elephant?

The Farm Bill looks to be closer to getting passed. After getting log jammed around a variety of economic and political issues, it looks to be headed out of committee next week. While President Bush is apparently still threatening to veto it, and while the Congressman in our area, Randy Neugebauer, has threatened to lead an over-ride of the veto, we'll just have to wait and see.

According to Senator Grassley of Iowa, the bill addresses the major issues pushed by the president, but is apparently still very far short of reform. Among other things, still the wealthiest of farmers continue to get subsidies while President Bush wanted limits on subsidies. According to Grassley and his list of top ten reforms in the farm bill, it is a "good faith" effort on behalf of Congress to get it done.

At the bottom of Grassley's top ten list is the one that jumps out as relative to these pages, "provides for right of action for Pigford Claims Act." Late claimants number approximately 75,000 black farmers who were denied access to the Pigford Consent Decree. What is right about this provision is that it acknowledges the problem; what it doesn't provide is a clear vision for righting the wrongs. It just opens up the possibility for wrongs to be righted. Let's all hope, and pray, and lobby for this provision to stand out loud and clear.

Other provisions of the bill allow for special consideration for socially disadvantaged farmers and first time farmers. Those are good things, but are they enough?

Here's the link to Grassley's page which will list in more detail his top ten reforms of the bill.

Here's what our area congressman wrote in his post to constituents yesterday:

NEUGEBAUER HAILS COMPLETION OF THE CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REPORT ON THE 2008 FARM BILL; CALLS FOR FARM BILL HARVEST

“The seeds have been planted; now we must prepare to harvest. It is time to roll up our sleeves and take this to the finish line”

WASHINGTON, DC – As the conference committee wrapped up an agreement on the 2008 Farm Bill Conference Committee Report, Congressman Randy Neugebauer (TX-19) released the following statement:

“I am pleased the conference committee was able to reach agreement on the 2008 Farm Bill. This is a substantial step towards this legislation becoming law. Seed has been planted across America, and it is time to set a farm policy that gives producers certainty for this crop season and beyond. As final language and budget numbers are completed, it is my expectation that the House and Senate will vote on this final Farm Bill package next week.

“While this legislation will make some changes I do not support, farm policy overall will remain very similar to policy under the 2002 Farm Bill, which producers across the district tell me has suited them well. Because of the delay in completing this legislation, no major changes will be implemented for the 2008 crop year.

“I call on the House and Senate leadership to bring this long overdue legislation to the respective chambers for consideration as soon as possible. Additionally, I spoke directly to the Secretary of Agriculture and the White House yesterday to stress the importance of signing this bill into law.

“While only 16 percent of this bill deals directly with agriculture production, it is that 16 percent that serves as the vehicle for the various other provisions in the bill. Without food production, nutrition and food assistance programs become irrelevant.

“In the 19th Congressional District, producers have crops in the ground and throughout the nation the planting season is well underway. We cannot afford to move forward without a sound farm policy for our producers. Without it, we face the risk of losing agriculture infrastructure and becoming dependent on other nations for food and fiber as we already are for energy.

“Now is the time to roll up our sleeves and finally take this long overdue legislation across the finish line. Again, I urge both the Senate and House leadership to bring this to a vote as soon as possible and ask that my colleagues support this critical legislation. Most importantly, I call on President Bush to sign this bill as soon as it reaches his desk. Should the President decide to veto this legislation, I will vote to override his veto and will encourage my colleagues to do so as well.”
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Southern Farmers and Their Stories

Melissa Walker's book, "Southern Farmers and Their Stories: Memory and Meaning in Oral History," is a book I keep reading and re-reading. The dominant themes relate to stories, how they're captured by the people who tell them, and how communities have memories that are community memories. She writes of the stories of transition from rural, early 1900's life on into the highly advanced, technological era in which we find ourselves.

Hidden within its pages, sometimes more obscure than I would wish, are stories and pages that relate to the black farmer. Here is one of her quotes. I hope you find it troubling, perplexing, and challenging.

"Even relatively prosperous African American farmers who avoided the trap of sharecropping blamed various forms of racial discrimination for black farmers' decisions to leave farming. Born in 1917, black Georgian James Hall grew up on a sharecropping farm in Lee County. As an adult, Hall farmed as a cash renter. He recalled that in 1939, he cleared $1,800 on his crops. With his profits, he had enough money to pay off his bills and to farm without borrowing operating cash the next year. He enjoyed another good year in 1940. Hall explained that in the spring of 1941, his landlord insisted that he agree to turn over the sale of his crop to the landlord. In other words, the landlord planned to transport the crop to market and negotiate the price, paying Hall from the proceeds. Landlords frequently used this strategy to cheat sharecroppers. Such a landlord would claim that a crop had sold for less than the actual market price, pay the cropper the smaller proceeds, and pocket the difference......Hall refused and moved to another rented farm......He continued farming his own land until 1989, and he and his wife still owned that land at the time of the interview in 1994. In spite of his success, Hall noted the difficulties that black farmers faced. He told the interviewer, 'All the Negroes now has done moved to town....They couldn't get nothing to do.' His wife added, 'The land belongs to the white people. They have the tractors and all the chemicals; they don't have to hoe their crops. Cotton pickers, peanut pickers and all that stuff....So that's what causes black folks to have to migrate to town.' Implicit in Mrs. Hall's account is an indictment of institutionalized racism that made it extremely difficult for black farmers to buy land, obtain annual operating credit, or qualify for loans to make capital investments in their operation. As Black Georgian Mary Shipp concluded, black farmers 'is almost extinct, especially in the South....It was hard to make it as a black farmer because many of the things available to white farmers were not available to black farmers.'" (pp. 160, 161)

She summarizes this particular section of her book by commenting that black farmers who left the land tell different stories than those of white farmers who left farming. Happy with the security they found through jobs in town and all, they "expressed bitterness at the forces that made it impossible for many blacks to remain on the land even as white neighbors farmed successfully." (pp. 163, 164)

Sound familiar?

No Fear in DC and Beyond

A huge conference is scheduled for next week, May 12-16, as part of Whistleblowers Week in DC. For our readers who live in or near that area, I'd strongly recommend that you attend. It'll bring together a strong group of activists, farmers, and legislators. People we know from around the country will be there to speak about things related to the price that people pay for blowing the whistle on wrong-doers and wrongful acts. They will speak at the Tribunal on Wednesday 14th. People will be there to speak in particular of whistleblowing and the USDA and black farmers along with a host of other arenas of the federal government.

I hope it is televised on C-span.

The original bill was signed into law by President Bush on May 12, 2002 as the Notification and Federal Employee Anti-discrimination and Retaliation of 2002 (No FEAR) Act. Here is the link to the document.

Here are some links for more information: http://www.w3conference.org/agenda.htm

Here is another link from Representative Sheila Jackson Lee from Houston, Texas that will spell things out about the conference: http://www.commondreams.org/news2008/0428-28.htm

Per Congresswoman Jackson's press release, contact Yohannes Tsehai (Yohannes.Tsehai@mail.house.gov) in the Congresswoman's office or Dr. Marsha Coleman-Adebayo (NoFearCoalition@aol.com) at the No FEAR Institute at (301) 320-3021 for more information.