UTICA, KENTUCKY– With this government poised
to foreclose on the family farm in rural Kentucky owned and operated
by Harry T. Young, a 77-year old, third generation African-American
farmer, black farmers from across the region and nation are being
asked to converge on the local office of the U.S. Department of
Agriculture on Friday, October 28th to rally in support of Young
and his family and to protest to decades of discrimination that
has threatened the farm.
The National Black Farmers Association, representing 66,000 members
nationwide, has called for urgent action from its members and has
asked them to attend the rally and halt the foreclosure of the Young
Family Farm. They will be gathering for a rally on Friday, October
28 at 10:00 am outside the USDA Farm Service Agency at 3032 Alvey
Park Drive, W in Owensboro, Kentucky.
Young is the only African-American farmer in a three county area-bordering
Daviess County and currently owns 300 acres of farmland, part of
which was inherited from his father and grandfather. Young and his
wife have documented cases of discrimination against their farm,
recounting instances where armed federal agents have surrounded
the family to serve notices. Just last month 15 gun-totting “appraisers”
marked onto the farm.
“This case shocks the senses, but is another reminder that
the good old boys network still controls vast parts of the USDA
farm system and threatens the livelihoods of Black farmers,”
said John Boyd, president of the National Black Farmers Association.
“These actions were explicitly dealt with in the landmark 1999
settlement of the black farmers’ historic class action civil
rights lawsuit against the USDA. Why does President Bush allow this
to continue. Rural Kentucky is not Iraq and the government should
stop treating Black farmers like second class citizens or worse,
terrorists.”
The number of black farmers across the nation has been dwindling.
At the turn of the century there are more than a million black farmers
in America, now there are just over 18,000 black-owned farms identified
by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Systemic discrimination against
black farmers has had a devastating effect that has contributed
to this rapid decline. The National Black Farmers Association believes
every black farmer forced from their property has a devastating
effect on this small endangered group.
To
join the rally, please contact John Boyd:
Toll Free: 1-866-881-4639
or (804) 691-8528
E-mail: johnwboyd2000@yahoo.com
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