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Guest Commentary February 9, 2002
Black Farmers Were Systematically Dispossessed from Their Land
The Honorable Maxine Waters
From the day that we earned our freedom, many African-Americans have chosen to support themselves and their families through farming. And we pursued this profession with dedication and determination.
Unfortunately, black farmers have faced opposition and intimidation from white farmers, Jim Crow laws, and the federal government. Local and state governments through the second half of the 1800s created laws that systematically stripped land from black farmers.
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The policy continued through the New Deal. President Roosevelt's much heralded policies which helped millions of people through those tough times, rarely helped black farmers despite the fact that they owned fourteen percent of the nation's farming land.
Surprisingly, at a time when other blacks were achieving civil rights, the federal government pursued policies that made the condition of the black farmers worse. Thousands lost their land and, by 1978, tragically, there were only 6,996 black farms left. Today, there are fewer than 18,000 black farmers, which represents less than one percent of all the farms in America.
These farmers worked their entire lives to get where they are today, and in many cases they are farming the same land as their grandparents and great-grandparents did. But due to unfair influences and the power of large corporations, these farmers are losing thousands of acres to development. What makes matters worse is that they are almost never given fair market value for their land.
It is easy for many of us just to sweep this under the rug and pretend that nothing like this happened. But we must face the facts and realize that thousands of black farmers were systematically dispossessed from their land. I propose that the Federal Government create a commission so that farmers can have a free and fair forum to bring their complaints and reconcile this matter. Our farmers deserve nothing less.
Maxine Waters, a Democrat, represents the 35th Congressional District of California in the U.S. House of Representatives. The above commentary has been adapted from a speech Rep. Waters delivered on the floor of the House, February 6, 2002. To contact her, Click Here.
The above column has been distributed by PoliticsOL.com.
