By Alex Gonzalez, Public News Service
The Biden-Harris administration has announced 103 grant awards to Nevada farmers, ranchers and forest landowners through the Discrimination Financial Assistance Program.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said it is all about doing what is right, as over the years, Black and other minority ranchers and farmers have experienced discrimination in farm loan programs, which in turn has limited their access to federal resources and support. Advocates now are hoping for more transparency about the selection criteria for the payouts.
Sharon Mallory, executive director of the 2020 Farmers Cooperative, said the payments are a step in the right direction but the program could be improved.
“I’m not personally dazzled about numbers or dollar amounts,” Mallory noted. “Unless I can connect that to the people that are being most impacted, which is our Black and small-scale farmers.”
Earlier this year, the University of Nevada, Reno announced a partnership with the USDA to work on initiatives to “strengthen” the food supply system in the Southwest. But Mallory emphasized the USDA should disclose more information about how the grant recipients were chosen, including who reviewed them and the racial demographics and farm sizes of the payouts. The awards range from a few thousand dollars to $500,000, with the average about $82,000.
The money comes from the Inflation Reduction Act and the majority of recipients are from the deep South. Mallory pointed out agriculture has been consolidating in recent decades and smaller minority farmers have often been forced out of business. She is pushing for the USDA’s program to improve, in part because of the history of discrimination.
“You can be like an ostrich and put your head in a hole, you can put your blindfolds on, you can turn your head the other way,” Mallory observed. “But the fact of the matter is, it did happen. It’s documented. It’s not a secret, so let’s address it.”
One study found Black American farmers lost more than $300 billion worth of land in the 20th century, due in part to the USDA’s discriminatory practices.
