Black farmers are filing a class-action lawsuit against the federal government, claiming harm caused by the canceling of a $4 billion loan forgiveness program.
As part of the American Rescue Plan, $4 billion was earmarked to forgive some USDA loans for farmers from underserved groups. The plan became law in March 2021 and was the Biden administration’s fulfillment of a promise made to support farmers of color who often faced discrimination when seeking loans and services from the USDA.
The program, however, was challenged by white farmers. Since the program was for farmers of color, white farmers were not eligible and deemed it discriminatory and unconstitutional. The loan forgiveness program through the American Rescue Plan was based on statistics that showed disparities in services and outcomes. The group of black farmers filing the class-action lawsuit will be represented by Benjamin Crump, the high profile attorney who also represented the family of George Floyd, the African-American man murdered by a Minnesota police officer in 2020.
