In March 1999, the farmers' class-action lawsuit, Pigford vs. Glickman, was settled through a consent decree signed by federal judge Paul Friedman. The lawsuit was in response to decades of racist practices by the USDA, in particular denying loans and disaster relief. Thousands of Black farmers have lost their lands through foreclosures because of such government practices.

The consent decree established two "tracks" for farmers involved in the suit. Track A offered farmers $50,000 and cancellation of debts to the government, supposedly with only limited documentation of discrimination required. One of the things a successful claimant had to find was a white farmer in similar circumstances who did receive loans from the USDA.

Track B allowed a farmer the possibility of collecting a higher sum than $50,000, and cancellation of government loans, if they could show documents proving racism. However, the decision would be made by an arbitrator and farmers filing through Track B could end up with nothing. It was a gamble.

A total of 20,675 farmers are involved in the settlement. The overwhelming majority--20,488--chose Track A because it was supposed to be the simplest and fastest way to get some monetary compensation. However, the majority of the farmers at the meeting had not yet received their checks.

It was reported that 88 percent of Track A cases have been adjudicated. Of these, 39 percent have been denied. Of those 61 percent approved, 40 percent have not yet been paid. Some $330,100,000 has been paid out so far.

Most of the questions to the lawyers on the speakers panel centered on why they haven't received their checks yet. Farmer after farmer told stories of receiving a letter from the government saying the check would be sent out within 60 days. Then another letter would arrive saying: make that 90 days. The 90 days would go by and still no check.  
 
Farmers furious at gov't stalling
Farmers were surprised and outraged to hear from the panelists that the government could appeal a decision already made by the adjudicator to pay a farmer the $50,000.

Randi Roth, the "independent monitor" who hears such appeals, was on the speakers panel. She stated that a government appeal may be the reason why the checks have not arrived, and told farmers they could leave her their names and she would investigate whether their case was being appealed.

Many farmers said they thought the "independent monitor" was only an avenue for farmers in Track A whose case had been denied by the adjudicator.

Rose Sanders, for the law firm of Chestnut, Sanders and Sanders, one of the firms representing the farmers in the lawsuit, stated, "The process is flawed." She complained to Roth about the short deadlines for filing paper work.

A woman farmer who took the floor after Roth's comments said, "We've been fighting this for three years. I'm tired of the lies. Let's march on the White House and let our concerns be known."

The next day, the South Carolina caucus of the Federation of Southern Cooperatives brought a motion to the business meeting to circulate a petition protesting the fact that approved cases go before the monitor.

Charles and Fannie Fletcher from southern Georgia came to the meeting with their seven-year-old daughter Lakeisha. They grow tobacco, peanuts, and corn, and raise hogs, goats, and sheep. They have filed a claim but have yet to receive any money.

Charles Fletcher said in an interview, "I tried many times to borrow money from the USDA and was always denied. I had to borrow from private sources at a higher interest rate. It's disgusting to see how they work."

The two farmers work jobs off the farm to pay the bills. Charles Fletcher previously worked 10 years in a railroad shop and eight years for Wal-Mart. He now sells fertilizer and household cleaning items. Fannie Fletcher works in home care.

Two weeks ago, Charles Fletcher said, the price they got for their tobacco was $1.45 per pound and they paid 84 cents per gallon for the gas used to cure the tobacco. "Now the price I receive for the tobacco is $1.39 per pound and I'm paying $1 per gallon for the gas. That's the way it is for everything on the farm--costs go up and income goes down."

Southern Georgia and Alabama are in the third year of a drought. Charles Fletcher, whose farm has no irrigation, said, "When my tobacco got two feet high it stopped growing, until we got a little rain. That meant the worms got the tobacco and I had to spray more. Water wells cost a lot of money. Us little farmers cannot afford them. My watermelons came up and died this year due to the drought. Others had corn in the field that burned up from the drought."

A couple who farm in Mississippi, and asked that their names not be used, said in an interview, "We received our check in June 2000. Maybe we got it because we had no outstanding loans with USDA."

Ernest Howard from Clarendon County, South Carolina, said he has not received a check. "They use all kinds of strategy to hold back payments," he said. "After the USDA was proven racist, you should not have had to find a white counterpart who did get loans in order to collect."

Howard's problems from the government's racist practices go back to 1982 when he filed for bankruptcy. He helped organize a number of other farmers in South Carolina to join the suit.

Dan Fein is a textile worker in Atlanta and Socialist Workers candidate for U.S. Congress in the Fifth District.