Greene County Democrat

Tag: Cornelius Blanding

  • Federation holds 58th Annual Meeting

    Phylicia Rashard receives award at the Federation meeting and Cornelius Blanding addresses membership at the 58th Annual Meeting.

      The Federation of Southern Cooperative/Land Assistance Fund held its 58th Annual Meeting, on the weekend of August 14-16, 2025. Over 400 people from the membership and guests registered and attended both parts of the meeting.
    The first part was the 24th annual Estelle Witherspoon Lifetime Achievement Award Dinner, held in Birmingham, to honor the legacy of the woman who served as the initial manager of the Freedom Quilting Bee and founding board member of the Federation. Phylicia Rashard, a stage and TV actress, most famous for her role as Claire Huxtable in the Cosby show, was honored with the Witherspoon Award.
    In her acceptance remarks, Rashard said she was “a person of the earth, like the Black farmers in the Federation. I remember going to visit my grandparents in Louisiana and South Carolina as a child observing them engaging with the land. This helped form the core of my artistic experience. I am a person of the earth, and I carry those experiences with me, wherever I go in life.”
    On Friday and Saturday, the meeting moved to the Federation’s Rural Training and Research Center between Epes and Gainesville in Sumter County. The same large crowd followed the program to its rural base.
    On Fridays, there usually is a panel of USDA program officials, who explain the latest changes and developments in Federal small agriculture programs, however this year the Trump Administration is still deliberating over whether the Federation’s mission of ‘cooperative development, upholding Black land ownership and advocacy for public policies benefiting small farmers and rural
    communities’ is in compliance with the President’s Executive Order banning Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
    In place of the USDA panels, the Federation had a panel on its own program initiatives and workshops on heirs property, forestry an agroforestry, as well as cooperative development
    The Federation’s Memorial Legacy Committee made a presentation on its plans and the development of a master plan for the Memorial Legacy Park, a living memorial of nature trails, gardens, orchards, outdoor classrooms, a remembrance wall, gazebos and other places for small groups to gather, cabins, fishing piers and other places for people to meet, learn, relax, renew and rejuvenate. The Committee suggested ways the membership could participate and support the project.
    On Saturday, there was a Prayer Breakfast featuring Rev. Wendell Paris of Jackson, Mississippi as the spiritual speaker and a best hat contest, honoring the late Mattie Mack, Kentucky Board Member, who always wore special decorative hats to the Federation’s Annual Meeting and Prayer Breakfast.
    At the annual Federation membership business meeting, Shirley Blakely, Chairperson gave some comments and Carrie Fulghum, Treasurer gave some financial data. Blakely introduced and praised Executive Director, Cornelius Blanding, who gave a more detailed report on the work of the Federation.
    In his report, Blanding said the Federation had grown to have $14.5 million in assets and had substantially reduced debts, despite loosing over $17.5 in Federal contracts because of USDA concerns about ‘diversity, equity and inclusion’ in Federal contracts. He said, “We are working to assure every farmer gets an official USDA farm number, to enable them to access USDA programs. We want each farm family to have a feasible farm plan and every co-op to have a business plan built from those farm plans. Every landowner, we work with to have an estate plan and a plan to work out any heir’s property problems that they may have,
    Blanding concluded by saying, “The Federation shows the extraordinary things that ordinary people can do – when they work together cooperatively.”
    For more information on the vision, work and programs of the Federation, contact their website at: http://www.federation.coop.

  • With support from USDA, Southern Farmers Financial Association launches to help farmers access capital to begin and grow small farming operations

    Participants in SFFI Press Conference
    Front Row: L to R:  Farmer, Ben Burkett,  Farmer, Calvin King, Cornelius Blanding, Shirley Sherrod, Dr. Dewayne Goldman (USDA), Cornelius Keys, Zack Duchenaux(USDA). 

    ATLANTA, Ga., Oct. 31, 2024 – Today, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and partners announced the launch of the Southern Farmers Financial Association (SFFA), a new cooperatively-owned institution created to increase access to capital for its member-owners to begin farming or strengthen existing small farming operations and agriculture-based businesses in high poverty areas in the Southeast.

    The organization is supported with $20 million in initial funding from President Biden and Vice President Harris’s Inflation Reduction Act, which will be used to leverage private sector capital, recruit full-time staff, and begin outreach and lending efforts. The proposed service area of the SFFA is 12 states I the Southeast.

    The impetus for the creation of this new small farm financial institution grew out of a discussion on the use of the ‘ ci pres’ funds, remaining unused funds in the Pigford II Black Farmers Discrimination lawsuit. There is still $8 million left in these funds, which are subject to the decision of Judge Friedman, Federal District Judge who presided over this case.

    A committee of Black and small farmer advocates continued pushing to use these and other funds to create a financial institution responsive to small and Black farmers. This committee was headed by Cornelius Blanding, current Executive Director of the Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund. Calvin King, President of the Arkansas Land and Farm Development Corporation and Shirley Sherrod, leader of New Communities and the Southwest Georgia Project, worked with Cornelius to develop this new financial institution for small and Back farmers.

    The Southern Farmers Financial Association will be managed by Cornelius Blanding, acting chief executive officer; Shirley Sherrod, acting secretary; and Calvin King, acting treasurer, until a board is formed, and initial hires are made. Each of these individuals brings lifelong expertise and personal experience with farming, farm finance, and helping rural, smallholder farmers maintain farm operations in the face of challenging financial situations.

    “The launch of the Southern Farmers Financial Association furthers the Biden-Harris USDA’s vision to keep farmers farming, support rural economies by making it viable for small farms to stay in operation, and make USDA’s programs more accessible and inclusive for everyone who wants to participate in agriculture,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “This new organization will provide a vital bridge to those who may benefit from a different model of outreach, support, and farm lending.”

    Farming is a capital-intensive business. It can be difficult to begin or stay in farming without the financial foundation that comes with generational farm operations, and smaller farms are especially vulnerable to the financial blows that come with natural disasters, lost markets, or other sudden impacts. Under a cooperative agreement with USDA, the SFFA will improve land access by creating access to capital and technical assistance for farmers and other producers who have historically faced challenges getting the financing they need so their farms can grow and thrive.

    On Thursday in Atlanta, at the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, USDA representatives and SFFA interim leadership gathered with stakeholders and farmers who would potentially receive funding from their new financial institution.

    Zach Ducheneaux, Administrator of USDA’s Farm Service Agency, who has spearheaded many changes at USDA to improve the farm lending process, applauded the organization’s launch. “As a child of the 1980’s farm crisis, I have seen firsthand the challenges farmers can have accessing capital, and the very difficult impacts that creates for individuals, families, and communities that stand to benefit from strong farming operations. I am excited to see these partners come together and reach farmers in a way that USDA recognizes we may not be able to.”

    “Every farmer needs affordable financing. Farmers must have reliable and consistent access to capital to be successful,” said USDA Under Secretary for Rural Development Dr. Basil Gooden. “For too long, access to capital has been out of reach for small farmers in the southeast region.”

    Support from the USDA will help bring other partners to the table so that SFFA can obtain strategic certifications and raise additional sources of capital. Examples include working with organizations like the Farm Credit system and Co-Bank to obtain Other Financial Institution (OFI) status, or working with the US Department of Treasury, Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) Fund to become a CDFI, and continued engagement with USDA so that the institution can become a guaranteed lender with the Farm Services Agency.

    “Supporting southern farmers is essential to supporting rural economies in communities across the south,” added Shirley Sherrod, acting secretary of the SFFA.
    “The SFFA and USDA are building up the toolset southern farmers can use to support their family farms and pass them on to the next generations,” said Cornelius Blanding, acting Chief Executive Officer.

    “This agreement will open up new opportunities for historically underserved southern farmers to sustain and grow their businesses,” said Calvin King, SFFA acting treasurer.

    The SFFA will build on several steps USDA has taken under the Biden-Harris Administration to expand access to capital, keep farmers farming, and make its programs more accessible and equitable… This includes the work of the USDA Equity Commission, an Heirs Property Relending Program, to help families with heirs property issues, programs to help 1890 Land Grant Colleges and their students, and other measures.

    For more information about these efforts and more, visit USDA.gov/equity.
    USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. In the Biden-Harris administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit www.usda.gov.

    The Greene County Democrat will continue to follow progress toward the creation, operation and implementation of the programs of the SFFA financial institution going forward.

  • Federation of Southern Cooperatives/LAF Business Meeting shows strength and future direction of the cooperative association of Black farmers and rural low-income people

     Board of Directors and Cornelius Blanding, Executive Director,

    By John Zippert, Co-Publisher

    In last week’s issue of the Greene County Democrat, we reported on the first two days of the Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund’s 57th Annual Meeting. This is a report on the third day, Saturday, August 17, 2024, which featured a prayer breakfast and business meeting.

    The Mattie Mack Pretty Hat Prayer Breakfast was in honor of past board member from Kentucky, who used to fix the breakfast on the Saturday morning. Ms. Mack, a tobacco and cattle farmer, always wore a hat to the Board and Annual Meetings, hence the challenge and tribute to the Federation’s female membership, to wear their best hat.

    Rev. Wendell H. Paris, who was the first Federation staff member on the grounds at the Federation’s Rural Training and Research Center and is now a minister in Jackson, Mississippi gave the prayer breakfast sermon. His address stressed the importance of voting in the upcoming November 5th election.

    At the Federation Business meeting, the Board of Directors and Cornelius Blanding, Executive Director, reviewed the progress of the past year and discussed potential future developments for the organization in the coming year.

    Shirley Blakeley, from Shuqualak, (Noxubee County) Mississippi, who is the Board Chair, gave a report highlighting the work of the Federation, as a ‘cooperating agency’ with the U. S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), especially with the DFAP – Discrimination Farmers Assistance Program, and conservation, forestry, climate, and agricultural marketing projects. Carrie Fulghum, Federation Board Treasurer, from Gainesville, Alabama, reported that the organization had current assets of $10 million, including grants and contracts payable, land, buildings, housing and other assets. Current liabilities were $300,000, placing the organization in its strongest financial position in its 57-year history.

    Cornelius Blanding, Executive Director, congratulated the Federation’s membership on ‘our 57th anniversary’ saying, “the Federation is a testament to grassroots community leadership, and the extraordinary things that ordinary people can do when they work together.” He repeated the figures from the Treasurers report indicating a historic net worth of the organization at $10 million.

    Blanding cited the collective impact of the Federation’s membership, cooperatives and affiliated organizations in increasing the staff from 50 to 75 in the past year. The staff works from seven (7) offices in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, South Carolina, and Florida. Most of these offices are owned by the Federation. Our RTRC site has been recognized and designated a demonstration forestry and agroforestry site, by the U. S. Forest Service, to serve and train Black and underserved rural people with small forestry acreages.

    “Our staff is committed and charged with assisting farmers to get a USDA farm identification number, needed to access USDA programs. We will assist members in applying for USDA credit, conservation, climate, and marketing resources to build their farms. We will help our members to have a business plan for their farm operations and an estate plan for the disposition of their land and assets at death. We also offer technical assistance, training and business management assistance to our member cooperatives,” said Blanding.

    “We have directly assisted 2,000 of our members to participate in the DFAP process. We estimate that $160 million in benefits were delivered by this one USDA program to our farmer members. We plan to help those who are continuing to farm to invest these resources wisely in their farm operations, said Blanding.

    He continued, “With the help of the Southern Black Farmer Community Led Fund, we have helped five agricultural co-ops in Alabama to acquire $500,000 each, in new infrastructure, to strengthen their ability to market and generate income from basic crop production. We are developing a Black Farmers Financial Institution, in collaboration with other groups to be funded from the Pigford lawsuit – ‘ci pres’ left over funds. We are also working to implement the Heirs Property Re-lending Fund, to assist families in clearing titles and fully utilizing their inherited land resources.”

    Blanding also cited work on the Federation’s Memorial Legacy Project, which will be a “living memorial to the grassroots leaders and organizations that help to create and implement the self-help strategies of the Federation. The Memorial Legacy Project will be built on the RTRC land between Epes and Gainesville, Alabama, consisting of a memorial wall, walking trails, gardens, orchards, gazebos, fountains, benches, cabins and other structures to recognize these pioneering leaders and help tell their story. During the past year the Federation’s RTRC was recognized by the Alabama Historical Commission and the National Parks Service, as a National Historical Site.

    Blanding indicated that the Federation was working on a new five-year strategic plan for the organization, which includes the following elements:

    Board, Membership and Staff Development
    Strengthen Cooperative Infrastructure
    Rural Training and Research Center Upgrade
    Renovations
    New Construction
    Memorial Legacy Project
    Farm and Forestry Demonstration sites, increase
    membership usages and training

    After the reports, members from each state met in state caucuses to elect Board members and discuss issues, ideas and program services to be added to the five-year strategic plan discussions.

     

  • USDA extends application deadline for Discrimination Financial Assistance Program to January 13, 2024

    WASHINGTON, Sept. 22, 2023 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture is extending the deadline for the Discrimination Financial Assistance Program to January 13, 2024, to give eligible farmers, ranchers and forest landowners more time to apply for assistance. The original deadline was October 31, 2023.
    This deadline extension is responsive to feedback from potential applicants, nongovernmental program administrators and community-based organizations working closely with USDA to inform and assist eligible individuals. The new deadline will allow more time to reach and help farmers, ranchers and forest landowners through direct, no-cost technical assistance and training sessions. The extension will also ensure everyone has adequate time to apply, including producers whose harvest season falls during the original application period.
    “USDA knows it must earn the trust of the farmers, ranchers and forest landowners who are eligible for this program. That makes transparency in the administration of the Discrimination Financial Assistance Program crucial,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “In that spirit, after receiving feedback from organizations that have been supporting producers throughout the application process, we have made the decision to extend the deadline. We believe this is the appropriate action to take to ensure all eligible individuals wishing to apply are adequately informed about the program and have the opportunity to receive any necessary assistance.”
    Cornelius Blanding, Executive Director of the Federation of Southern Cooperatives/LAF , a cooperator organization that has been assisting with outreach and technical assistance on DFAP applications, said “ We are pleased that USDA has extended the deadline to January 13, 2024. This will give us a chance to reach the hundreds of farmers who have contacted our offices across the South seeking assistance in filling out their DFAP applications. We will be able to devote time to planning and preparing quality applications for each farmer instead of rushing to meet the October deadline.”
    This program delivers on Section 22007 of the Inflation Reduction Act, which provides financial assistance for farmers, ranchers and forest landowners who experienced discrimination in USDA farm lending programs prior to January 2021. Congress provided a total of $2.2 billion for this program. The amount of money awarded to individuals through this program will depend on the number of eligible applicants and the consequences of the discrimination. Eligible individuals have the option to apply online or by submitting paper-based forms via mail or in-person delivery to local program offices. Applicants are not required to retain an attorney and should take precautions to protect themselves from potential scams.
    In addition to the application deadline change, the deadline to request records from USDA’s Farm Service Agency for use in applications has been extended to Friday, Nov. 3, 2023. The application process was designed so that FSA records are not required, though relevant records may be attached to an application as additional evidence if they are available.
    To learn more about the Discrimination Financial Assistance Program or receive assistance in English or Spanish, visit www.22007apply.gov, email info@22007apply.gov or contact the national call center at 1-800-721-0970 from 8 a.m. ET to 8 p.m. PT, every day except federal holidays. If you use sign language to communicate, you can use the 711 relay service to call. You may also email or contact the national call center if you have a disability and need another accommodation. Information about the program, resources, recent office openings and local events across the country is also available through a weekly e-newsletter.
    Persons interested in contacting the Federation of Southern Cooperatives for technical assistance in filling out applications may call : 1-888-533-3271 or contact: 22007dfap@federation.coop to schedule an appointment for technical assistance in the application process.

  • Federation holds 56th Annual Meetings; vows to help every Black farmer in the South that wants to file a discrimination application by October 31 deadline

    Pictured: Crowd at Annual Meeting and Mrs Xernona Clayton getting award

    By: John Zippert, Democrat Co-Publisher

    The Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund held its 56th. Annual Meeting last Thursday to Saturday, August 17-19, 2023. Thursday’s activities, including the Estelle Witherspoon Lifetime Achievement Award banquet, were held at the Sheraton Hotel in downtown Birmingham and Friday and Saturday’s activities were held at the Federation’s Rural Training and Research Center, near Epes, Alabama.

    At the business meeting on Saturday, Cornelius Blanding, Federation’s Executive Director stated, “We want to help every Black farmer in the states of South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas, where we have offices and staff, to prepare and submit an application for assistance if they were discriminated against in the USDA farm lending process, before January 1, 2021.

    “We will be holding open weekly sessions in each state to meet with farmers to explain the program and help people to fill out the 40-page application for assistance correctly, including all necessary required documents. We will also be scheduling one-on-one conferences with farmers to help them with these DFAP applications. We have a short timeline to reach everyone since the current deadline date for this program is October 31, 2023, just 69 days away, from today.”

    Blanding said that the Federation, is one of nine “cooperator organizations” funded by USDA to help farmers with the DFAP process.
    Other organizations that are participating and helping are listed on the USDA website: http://www.22007apply.gov.

    USDA officially announced the availability of applications for DFAP in mid-July. Section 22007 of the Inflation Reduction Act, passed a year ago, contains $2.2 Billion for payments to any farmers discriminated against by USDA in farm loan programs. Any farmer who borrowed or attempted to borrow for farming purposes is eligible to apply and must “tell their story” of mistreatment by the government agencies in providing the assistance or in not providing the requested assistance.

    Farmers are required to scan and upload documents, including two forms of identification, an IRS W-9 form, their land deed or leases, farm plans, receipts for farm related purchases, any correspondence or records
    (receipts for service) received from USDA agencies, actual loan documents, statements under penalty of perjury from neighbors and non-related parties who know of the discrimination and any other relevant materials.

    Attorney Dania Davy, the Federation’s Director of Land Retention said, “this is not another lawsuit, this is a different process, handled by USDA contracted third parties. It is similar to the lawsuits in terms of the information needed to establish discrimination but different in terms of the payments and requirements.”

    Davy continued, “This time the process is only open to living people who directly experienced discrimination, with one exception to those who formally were assigned a debt by a deceased borrower, who was discriminated against. This DFAP process is not for heirs and estates, as some of the prior lawsuits and settlement were.”

    Federation staff are advising farmers to go to the DFAP website at:
    http://www.22007apply.gov, to read and look at the program information, frequently asked questions, document checklist and the 40-page application itself.

    Attorney Hank Sanders of Selma, who is working with the Federation on this DFAP process said the first time he saw the 40-page application,
    “It was intimidating and a daunting experience; but after I read through it and started working with it, I determined it was a good way for farmers, with help from groups like the Federation, to tell their story and make their case for monetary assistance toward past discrimination.”

    In this process, there is no minimum payment (like the $50,000 in the lawsuits). The maximum payment to one individual farmer will be $500,000.
    The minimum payment is based on the total number of applications received, the severity of, and damages caused by the discrimination. Some preference for helping farmers, who are still working on the land, is implied but not officially stated.

    In addition to the discussion and workshops on the DFAP -22007 Discrimination Farmers Assistance Program, representatives of USDA including Dr. Dewayne Goldman, Special Assistant to the Secretary for Equity, Zack Ducheneaux, FSA National Director and Scott Marlow, Assistant to the FSA Director, were present to speak to other programs of USDA. They explained the borrower’s relief, Section 22006, available to farmers with current FSA loans, who had financial difficulties in repayment, related to COVID, weather conditions and other problems.

    There was a workshop on the heirs property programs, including the Heirs Property Relending Program which has allocated $5 million to the Federation, through Shared Capital, a mid-west CDFI, for loans to help clear titles and purchase the interests of heirs, no longer interested in owning property. This program is prepared to begin considering loans in coming weeks. Heirs must meet a series of requirements, available from the Federation, to be able to file an application.

    There were also tours of the Federation’s forestry and agro-forestry demonstrations at the Rural Training and Research Center. The evening was completed with a fish fry and a tasting of shrimp and beef kabobs from two new co-ops from Texas, the Matagorda Bay Fishing Co-op, and the Agri-Unity Beef Producers Co-op.

    On Thursday evening in Birmingham, the Federation held its 22nd annual Estelle Witherspoon Lifetime Achievement Award Banquet. The award is named for a founding member of the Federation and long-time manager of the Freedom Quilting Bee of Alberta and Gee’s Bend, (Wilcox County) Alabama.

    The Federation gave the award to Ms. Xernona Clayton, a 92-year-old veteran civil rights and communications personality from Atlanta. She did public relations work for Dr. King and SCLC, was an executive at Turner Broadcasting and involved in the civil rights and human rights movement in Atlanta and the southern states. Ms. Clayton praised the Federation for its work with farmers and other poor people in the region and said she was humbled in receiving the award.

    For more information on the Federation of Southern Cooperatives/LAF go to their website at: http://www.federation.coop or call 404/765-0991 or 205/652-9676.

     

     

  • USDA provides $5 million Heir Property Lending Fund
    Federation celebrates 55th Annual Meeting

    Rev Bernard Lafayette (center) receives Estelle Witherspoon Lifetime Achievement Award at Federation dinner; joined by L. To R. Cornelius Blanding, Federation Executive Director and Board members, Carrie Fulghum, Shirley Blakely, Helen Fields and Raymond Olds.
    Federation Attorney Dania Davy, Dr. Jewel Bronaugh, Deputy Secretary of Agriculture, Cornelius Blanding, Federation Executive Director
    Charles O. Prejean, first Executive Director of the Federation and his wife, Carmen Prejean speaking at Witherspoon award dinner
    Part of crowd at Federation Annual Meeting at Epes
    Cornelius Blanding giving his report at the Federation’s Business Meeting.

    The Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund celebrated its 55th Annual Meeting this past weekend.

    The program began on Thursday evening, August 18, 2022, with the 21st Annual Estelle Witherspoon Lifetime Achievement Award Dinner, at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Birmingham, Alabama. Rev. Bernard Lafayette, veteran civil rights leader, and teacher of Kingian non-violence, received the award named for Estelle Witherspoon, former manager of the Freedom Quilting Bee and a founding member of the Federation.

    In his remarks, accepting the award, Rev. Lafayette said,” I am honored to receive this award from the Federation which has helped Black farmers and poor people change and impact their communities for 55 years. I urge you to involve more young people in your movement like we did in the 1960’s. Young people and students will make the difference in internalizing and institutionalizing the cooperative movement.”

    Earlier in the day, there was a press conference at the hotel, where Dr. Jewel Bronaugh, Deputy Secretary of Agriculture, announced a $5 million Heirs Property Relending Fund allocation to the Federation, in conjunction with Shared Capital, a CDFI, which will used to make loans to Black families with heir property problems.

    The Heirs Property Relending Program was included in the 2018 Farm Bill after vigorous advocacy efforts by the Federation, Intertribal Agriculture Council, and the Rural Coalition. The Trump Administration delayed writing regulations to implement the needed program. Secretary Vilsack, under the Biden Administration, completed the regulations and put our the first call for proposals this year. The allocation to the Federation and two Indian land organizations, were the first made from the program.

    Secretary Bronaugh indicated that the Federation would also receive an augmented Cooperative Agreement to provide technical and legal assistance to families encountering heir property issues. In his remarks accepting the announcement, Cornelius Blanding, Federation Executive Director said,”60% of all Black land is now owned jointly by families in heir property status. The Federation and Emergency Land Fund have been working on this problem for 45 years and these funds will help us to do a more effective job for our members and others with heir property problems.”

    Attorney Dania Davy, who heads the Federation’s Land Retention Program, said “We are pleased to receive these funds which will enable families to clear titles, deal with reluctant heirs, and access more USDA resources. This will impact Black landowners with over a million acres, with a conservative value of $15 billion across our nation.

    On Friday and Saturday, the meeting shifted to the Federation’s Rural Training and Research Center, near Epes, Alabama. Over 400 people from the states of Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Kentucky, Florida, and Texas attended the workshops, tours, demonstrations, prayer breakfast and business meeting held there over the next two days.

    Friday began with a panel of USDA program representatives explaining their agency efforts at creating more equity and diversity in their staff and work.

    Dr. Dewayne Goldman, Special Assistant for Equity to Secretary Vilsack, explained the Biden’s Administration’s equity efforts by saying, “Suppose you had three people standing outside a baseball stadium, with a six-foot fence, to see the game. One was 5 feet, one was 5 foot seven, and one was 6 feet tall. If each was given a one-foot stool stand on, this would be equality, everyone gets the same; but the smaller person would still not be able to see the game. Equity is needed to give each person the right size stool so they can actually see the game. Black farmers and other underserved farmers will receive equity in receiving and utilizing USDA resources.”

    Goldman then explained the new sections in the just passed Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) which will benefit Black farmers and other underserved and financially distressed farmers. He was joined remotely on a zoom by Adam Zipkin with Senator Cory Booker’s office and Brandon Honeycutt from Senator Raphael Warnock’s office, who are on the Senate Agriculture Committee, and were influential in getting these provisions into the Inflation Reduction Act.

    Goldman explained that the IRA, rescinds Section 1005 of the American Rescue Plan, which contained debt forgiveness for all BIPOC farmers. These provisions were challenged in Federal Court by white farmers, saying the provisions were discriminatory towards them and unconstitutional. These farmers and their right-wing allies stopped the program implementation.

    The IRA contains $3.1 billion for loan modifications for farmers in financial distress and facing foreclosure. The IRA also contains $2.2 billion for farmers who suffered discrimination in receiving financial assistance from USDA.

    Goldman asked for comments and assistance in drafting the regulations for implementation of these two sections in the IRA. He promised that “USDA would work expeditiously to get this relief to farmers who need assistance and to prevent foreclosures.”

    On Friday afternoon workshops were held on Cooperative Development and Heirs Property issues. The day ended with a fish fry and auction.

    Saturday’s program began with a Prayer Breakfast, with women wearing hats to honor deceased Kentucky Board member Mattie Mack. Rev. Wendell Paris preached a sermon based on Jeremiah 31.31, which deals with a new covenant with God. The prayer breakfast was followed by the annual business meeting, state caucus and the awarding of scholarship to four young people headed to college.

    For more information on the work and programs of the Federation, go to the website: http://www.federation.coop, or call 205-652-9676 in Epes or 404-765-0991 in East Point, GA.

  • Federation provides update on Black farmer debt relief lawsuit

    By: John Zippert, Co-Publisher

    The Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund (Federation), a regional Black farmer, landowner and cooperative development association has been the primary advocate for Black farmers in combating lawsuits by white farmers to block debt relief assistance under Section 1005 of the American Rescue Plan.

    The Federation filed a motion to intervene in the Texas case of Miller vs. Vilsack, in October 2021. Judge Reed O’Connor denied the Federation’s motion to intervene on December 8, 2021. The Federation appealed this decision to deny its motion to intervene at the end of December. Both sides have submitted briefs in the appeal which is currently pending.

    “It is with great concern that the Federation continues to work to persuade the Texas district court in Miller vs. Vilsack to allow the voices of and interests of our member-farmers to be heard during the Texas case that threatens their very existence. The impact of the delayed debt relief for Black and underserved farmers as it pertains to the American Rescue Act is already being experienced by our member-farmers in the form of foreclosure letters and lost land,” said Cornelius Blanding, Executive Director of the Federation.

    The Federation continues to advocate for its member-farmers with all of the legal instruments available for the USDA promised black farmer debt relief under Section 1005 of the American Rescue Plan. The Federation cannot allow their voices to be excluded from this lawsuit because they have far too much to lose. The white farmers in the case will be able to provide their reasons for trying to prevent Black, Indigenous and other farmers of color (BIPOC) from receiving the USDA promised aid. In the spirit of racial justice and fairness, the Black and other farmers of color must be afforded the same opportunity to share with the judge why the case should be thrown out and they receive the USDA promised aid.

    There were provisions in the proposed Build Back Better Act to provide debt relief to economically disadvantaged farmers, which included many of the Black farmers promised debt relief in the American Rescue Plan. The Build Back Better legislation has stalled in the U. S. Senate because of the opposition of all Republican and two Democratic Senators.

    “With the shift away from the racial equity focus on debt relief provisions of the Build Back Better legislation and its passage at a standstill, our members desperately need the Judge in this lawsuit to allow them to intervene as parties so they can share their experiences of racial discrimination and the very real risk of foreclosure our member-farmers, especially those with guaranteed loans, continue to face if Section 1005 is not fully implemented as passed last year,” said Dania Davy, the Federation’s Attorney and Director of Land Assistance Programs.

    Blanding stated, “The Federation of Southern Cooperatives celebrates the commitment Secretary Vilsack and the Biden Administration has shown towards the plight of the Black farmers and all farmers and ranchers of color. Secretary Vilsack and the USDA continues to honor their commitment to racial equity, as shown by the last week’s January 10th renewed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) extending the partnership between the USDA and the Federation of Southern Cooperatives at our administrative offices. We remain committed to executing all existing avenues available to remove all barriers experienced by farmers of color.”

    The MOU renews a partnership between the Federation, the National Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), the US Forest Service, and the National Agroforestry Center aimed at increasing the number of black and underserved landowners in the South and support them in sustainable forestry and agroforestry practices.

    Additionally, Secretary Vilsack announced the Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund is the recipient of a new NRCS Equity agreement focusing on the critical role African-American and other underserved landowners play in forest management, food production, conservation, wood energy, and climate mitigation.

    “The Federation is honored to continue to serve our members and their communities in ways that promote fair and racially equitable access to USDA programs and services and the critical technical assistance to improve program participation in programs towards promoting a more just and sustainable environment for all the communities we serve and the Southern region as a whole. The Federation’s Rural Training and Research Center, located in Epes, Alabama (Sumter County) and Regional Community Forest Initiative will be critical components of this work, “stated Blanding.

    The Federation can be reached through its website: http://www.federation.coop or by calling 205-652-9676 in Epes, Alabama.
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  • Federation files motion on behalf of Black Farmers, to intervene in Texas lawsuit, which blocks $4 billion debt relief in Section 1005 of the American Rescue Plan

    East Point, GA — After decades of longstanding racism in the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) loan programs, Black farmers stand to lose their farms, land and livelihoods after a temporary injunction halted an estimated $4 billion in debt relief passed by Congress as part of the American Rescue Act. Today the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Public Counsel, and pro bono counsel Winston & Strawn LLP, filed an intervention motion on behalf of the Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund (the Federation). The motion was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas in Miller v. Vilsack.

    Section 1005 of the American Rescue Plan, signed into law on March 11, 2021, was designed to provide debt relief to Black farmers, and other farmers of color, who have long suffered at the hands of the USDA’s harmful discrimination. The USDA’s long-documented and acknowledged racist policies of denying and delaying loans prevented Black farmers from operating successful farm businesses, forcing foreclosures and continuing the shameful legacy of Black land loss in the United States.

    In Miller v. Vilsack, five white Texas farmers filed a lawsuit against the USDA alleging that loan forgiveness payments violate the U.S. Constitution. This case is one of many ongoing lawsuits involving Section 1005 in other jurisdictions, including Florida, where a federal court issued a preliminary injunction against the program. Plaintiffs specifically argued that Section 1005 of the American Rescue Plan of 2021 (“ARPA”) violates the equal protection rights promised under the Constitution for farmers and ranchers who stand eligible for USDA loans but do not qualify for debt relief under the program. 

    “The USDA has a documented history of discriminating against Black people and communities of color. The federal government’s attempt to rectify this injustice should be applauded, not stopped,” said Damon Hewitt, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. “If this critical assistance is not provided soon, Black farmers and other farmers of color who have struggled to overcome decades of discrimination and the economic impacts of the global pandemic will face the threat of losing their land and their livelihoods.”

    Farmer declarations included in the intervention cite multiple instances of discrimination, including:

    Misplaced loan paperwork and approval delays of more than two years;
    Inability to sell equipment to repay loans due to vandalism at the auction house in the form of racist graffiti on the tractors up for bid;
    Loan paperwork being filed on time but funds chronically arriving too late for planting season;
    Inaccurate advice about whether FSA loans could be restructured; and
    Receiving loan funds weeks later in the season than white farmers in the same area, providing them with an unfair advantage in planting and harvesting a profitable crop.

    Encountering years of unfair loan terms, mistreatment by the USDA, and discrimination at every turn, Black farmers are now currently less than 1% of all farmers in the country. This has not always been the case. In 1920, one out of every seven farms were owned by a Black farmer, but the number of Black farmers in America has dropped significantly — plummeting by 98% over the past century.   

    “The Federation was encouraged by USDA’s and Congress’s attempt to address the disproportionate impact of the debt burden that farmers of color face because of historic and on-going race-based discrimination in agricultural credit,” said Cornelius Blanding, Executive Director of the Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund. “Black farmers have always honored their commitments to their communities and our nation; our hope is that the Department will be allowed to honor its commitment to our farmers and other farmers of color.”
     
    A temporary injunction against the program stands in the way of critical debt relief for those who need it the most. Without debt relief, these farmers face losing their land, livelihoods and equipment, while also bearing the additional financial burden of the farming costs they’ve taken on in anticipation of debt forgiveness. Today’s intervention positions The Federation to vigorously defend Section 1005 and ensure that the narratives of Black farmers are heard as this debt relief is critical to their survival.

    For more information on this lawsuit intervention, or to discuss other issues with discrimination and land loss, contact Attorney Dania Davy at the Federation office at: daniadavy@federation.coop or call 404-765-0991.

     

     

  • Federation holds 54th Annual Meeting; honors Marian Wright Edelman

    The Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund held its fifty-fourth Annual Meeting, on a virtual basis over three days, August 19-21, 2021. The Federation started in 1967 by cooperatives and credit unions that were developed during the Civil Rights Movement is now the premier organization representing 75 cooperatives and 10,000 remaining Black farmers in the South. On Thursday evening, the Federation honored Marian Wright Edelman, emeritus director of the Children’s Defense Fund, with its Estelle Witherspoon Lifetime Achievement Award, for her service to low-income people, especially children. Edelman is also a long-time columnist in the Greene County Democrat. This was the twentieth time the Federation awarded its highest award, named for Estelle Witherspoon, former Manager of the Freedom Quilting Bee of Wilcox County and an original incorporator of the Federation. The award was accepted by Oleta Fitzgerald, a long-time colleague of Marian Wright Edelman. On Friday, the Federation hosted a panel of representatives of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) on programs and benefits available to Black and family sized farmers, like those in the Federation’s membership. The panel was highlighted by its first speaker, Tom Vilsack, Secretary of Agriculture. Vilsack said he was working to “include more equity and diversity in the internal operations, staffing and programs of USDA. He introduced several Black and people of color, that he had selected to serve in leadership positions within USDA. The Secretary also announced the availability of $67 million in funding for an “Heirs Property Re-lending Program” which will assist families facing problems in clearing title to agricultural land, left by deceased relatives, who did not make wills. The Federation worked to get provisions for this program included in the 2018 Farm Bill but the Trump Administration failed to issue regulations to implement the program. The Secretary indicated that he expected the Federation, among others groups, to apply for these funds to implement a stronger program of heirs property assistance. The Secretary also spoke to the assistance for Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) farmers in Sections 1005 and 1006 of the American Rescue Plan. The $4 billion of debt relief promised in Section 1005 has been held-up by lawsuits filed by White farmers in 13 Federal Court districts, who charge that the program discriminates against them. Vilsack said USDA was fighting the lawsuits and would continue the moratorium on foreclosures until the legal matters were resolved. He also said that he was working to implement Section 1006 which will provide benefits to BIPOC farmers as Congress intended. Agency heads from Farm Services Agency, Natural Resource Conservation Service, Forestry Service, Rural Development, APHIS, Agricultural Marketing Service and others also spoke about their programs, services and benefits tailored to BIPOC farmers. On Saturday, the Federation held a prayer breakfast followed by a business meeting. Cornelius Blanding, Executive Director, reported that despite many challenges the organization was financially stable, staffed and ready to assist its members in growing and having greater success as farmers, fishers and workers in the coming post-pandemic economy. The Federation also award six young people, affiliated with Federation member organizations with a $1,000 college scholarship, named for Anulet Pat Jackson, a former staff member. The scholarships have been funded on an annual basis for the past ten years by Sharing Inc. Pam Madzima, Alabama State Coordinator for the Federation, said, “We have awarded 75 young people scholarships through this program. Many have gone on to complete their studies and serve their communities.”

  • Newswire: Diane Wilson, environment justice activist enters fourth week of hunger strike to stop dredging in Matagorda Bay, Texas

    Diane Wilson

    By: John Zippert, Co-Publisher, Special to the Greene County Democrat

    Diane Wilson, a fourth-generation fisher from Seadrift, Texas enters the fourth week of a hunger strike to protest the dredging of the ship channel in Matagorda Bay, coastal Texas, about one hundred miles south and east of Houston. Wilson, a 72-year-old grandmother, is the San Antonio Bay and Estuarine Water keeper who has been an environmental guardian of the San Antonio, Matagorda and Lavaca Bay areas on the Texas Gulf Coast. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACOE) has reactivated a plan to dredge the ship channel in Matagorda Bay to serve Max Midstream, a pipeline company that plans to build a crude oil export terminal at Port O’Connor at the eastern head of Matagorda Bay. The dredging will involve deepening the 26-mile channel by 8 feet and widening it by 150 feet, which involves dredging 14 million tons of mud from the seafloor. The dredging is complicated because it touches upon an EPA Superfund site, which was polluted with mercury by Alcoa in the past. The original USACOE Environmental Impact Statement, compiled in 2009 for a LNG export terminal project, that was not built, provided for placing the dredged materials to create new wetland marshes, islands and oyster reefs offshore. This is similar to dredging projects in Galveston Bay and other Texas coastal areas. The USACOE revised its plan to allow placing the dredged materials on the western side of the bay, covering a third of the existing oyster reefs, beaches used for recreation and generally impairing commercial and recreational fishing in the Matagorda Bay complex. The USACOE also accelerated the permitting process for the dredging at the request of Max Midstream and Texas politicians supporting export of the state’s fracked petroleum resources. Wilson said, “ I felt I had no choice but to start my hunger strike. I saw no way to stop this fast-tracking of the dredging of my beloved bays in Texas to provide for a crude oil export terminal, that some oil and gas people say is not even needed. I want to alert the community to the dangers of this dredging to health, fishing and recreation. I want the dredging to stop and President Biden to reinstate the ban on exporting oil that Trump lifted.” Wilson says that this is her eighth hunger strike. She participated in a 56-day strike, her longest, in Washington D. C. to try to close the Guantanamo Bay prison. Wilson, was also a plaintiff in a 2019 case against the Formosa Plastic Corporation, for polluting Matagorda Bay with microscopic plastic pellets. This case resulted in a $50 million dollar settlement against Formosa to help restore and improve the environmental quality of Matagorda Bay. The settlement includes $20 million to support the development of a fishing cooperative to revive the traditional economy of the coastal area. “The U. S. Army Corps of Enginers have never been helpful to the environment unless we force them to pay attention to these issues. I am on this hunger strike to stop this harmful dredging of the bay. The state of Texas regularly gives tickets to fishers for harvesting oysters that are smaller than 3 inches but now it is planning to dump mud on and destroy 700 acres of oyster reefs. This expedited plan to dredge the bay will kill our efforts to develop this fishing cooperative,” said Wilson The Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund, based at its Rural Training and Research Center, in Epes, Alabama, has been contracted, as part of the legal settlement, to provide technical assistance in developing the commercial fishing cooperative. Cornelius Blanding, Federation Executive Director said, “We have been working with fishers in the Matagorda Bay area to develop a cooperative. This dredging, without suitable environmental protections, will imperil this important grassroots economic development and revitalization effort. We have reached out to our contacts in the Biden Administration to ask them to stop this dredging until a new EIS is developed and approved. We are especially concerned about the disturbance and dispersal of mercury in the bay as well as the destruction of oyster reefs and shrimp breeding estuaries ” A group of environmental organizations, connected with Earthworks, held a protest rally, together with kayaks in the bay, at the end of the Lavaca Bay Causeway, the site of Diane Wilson’s hunger strike, on Sunday, April 25th. This rally was held to call attention to her hunger strike and urge the USACOE and President Biden’s Administration to stop the dredging and the export of crude oil. Persons interested in supporting Diane Wilson’s hunger strike and campaign to stop the dredging and export of oil may contact her through: http://www.facebook.com/unreasonablewoman or email at wilsonalamobay@aol.com.