Des Moines, IA (AP) — A class-action lawsuit says the federal government has illegally broken a promise to pay off the debts of a group of Black farmers.
The group hopes to put pressure on officials to restore funding that was dropped after a group of white farmers filed legal challenges.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture now is moving forward with another effort to help farmers in financial distress and to pay farmers who the agency discriminated against.
However, one of the plaintiffs says that the new programs don’t match the USDA’s earlier offer to pay off 120% of the debt of socially disadvantaged farmers.
