What does it take for a farmer to get the federal government to make good on a promise – particularly if it’s the U.S. Department of Agriculture and it involves restitution for years of racial discrimination in rural America?
Patience. A lot of patience. And when that runs out, rallying for some help from Congress and the White House.
The current brouhaha dates to 1999, when the USDA reached a settlement with black farmers in a discrimination case that alleged that the agency had denied federal loans, disaster assistance and other aid to certain farmers because of the color of their skin. (The agency is still fighting similar class-action suits filed by Latino and Native American farmers.)
The USDA approved about 15,000 claims and paid out about $1 billion, but has refused more than 70,000 claims that were filed after the October 1999 deadline. Farmers said they were given no notice of the deadline.
The two sides have been fighting ever since. And despite a fairly scathing slap by the Government Accountability Office a few years ago, and President Obama more recently pledging to add an additional $1 billion-plus to the settlement fund as part of other Congressional bills, the cash still isn’t getting out to these farmers.
So the farmers are shutting off their tractors and taking their frustrations to the streets. This week, the National Black Farmers Assn. has been staging rallies across the South, trying to bolster support. It might be a tough sell, given the current state of the economy. They’re planning to wrap up their campaign with a national rally on Feb. 15 in front of USDA's main offices in Washington.
-- P.J. Huffstutter
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
The Time for Action is Now: LA Times Editorial, February 8, 2010
Monday, January 18, 2010
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Another exchange of ideas about hair
Sometimes it's important to sit back and let someone who knows what they're talking about to provide instruction. Following the last post on Kid Rock's documentary, a good friend made some provocative comments via email. It is with her permission that the following quote is placed here. Thanks, Janice, for once more making me think about things that matter.
I think Rock (didn't see the movie) tried to bring awareness through humor. I was struck by your comments about the business industry part of it. No doubt that money has been made, but I think that really oversimplifies the issue. The brief discussion shared between a friend and myself had to do with how much "hair" is related to slavery and the position/privilege aligned with your hair-the socialization or unconscious carryover to present. In short...those with straighter hair (more white hair) were usually the master's children, although not claimed. Those children were often the house slaves and "afforded" more privilege b/c of their relation to the master. They also had a tendency to perceive themselves as better although they were still slaves. Whites had a tendency to see them as prettier and b/c self image was highly influenced by the master race-for example, children begin to develop an idea of self in relation to how the parent views them. So, if whites didn't see black as pretty and the lighter you were, the less black you were, therefore, you must be pretty or prettier. The hair thing is very similar to the color thing-it all ties together. The fairer blacks obviously were the children of the master. If white is beautiful, then black must not be, so the less black you are, the prettier you are. It's crazy! So, here we are in the 21st century still talking about what (how one) defines beauty or status based on years of slavery, dissociating from things that make you more black-more acceptable. Probably mostly doing life in some form of "self hate" not realizing it nor being able to give it a name. Unconsciously playing out on a daily basis. --- Janice Hayes
Saturday, October 31, 2009
"Good Hair:" Let It Speak for Itself
Chris Rock is apparently walking out on thin ice in some circles. From his daughter's pleadings to his research and interviews, and now to this documentary, he is pulling aside the veil of secrecy between some and others, but not so between others and others. Hair care is a multi-billion dollar industry in this country, for African Americans and for others of all genders and ethnicities. It's both humorous, engaging, moving, and informing.
On the white side, just look sometimes at the lengths that we men will go to do keep, replace, or make younger our hair, and that's just on the male side of the spectrum. I'll have to ask my wife about the female side of the equation.
In the meantime, I've watched and listened from the side lines the issues that Rock addresses in this documentary. It's been a learning experience, and it's time for all of us to learn more out of respect, decency, and all. Let me know what you think about this trailer and/or the documentary.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Struck by Quotes from Merton and Cone
In my surfing through various pages of readings today, these two quotes stood out:
From Thomas Merton:
For me--the betrayal I have to look out for is that which would consist simply in attaching myself to a "cause" that happens to be operating at this time, and getting involved, and letting myself be carried along with it, simply making appropriate noises from time to time, at a distance. -- End of 1965, V.342-43 as cited in A Year with Thomas Merton: Daily Meditations from His Journals.
From James Cone:
Because Black Theology's Christology is based on the biblical portrayal of Jesus Christ and Jesus' past and present involvement in the struggle of oppressed peoples, it affirms that who Jesus Christ is for us today is connected with the divine future as disclosed in the liberation fight of the poor. When connected with the person of Jesus, hope is not an intellectual idea; rather, it is the praxis of freedom in the oppressed community. -- God of the Oppressed
