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Exclusively in the New Print Issue of CounterPunch
"Ending US-Sponsored Torture Forever"
Joann Wypijewski reports on the growth of the U.S. torture archipelago and on the church-led campaign led by the National Religious Campaign Against Torture (NRCAT) which is striking a spark amid the darkness. Also in this latest newsletter, Diana Johnstone explores the one of the sinister monuments of the Clinton years: Kosovo, whose gangster premier runs a criminal enterprise which has murdered Serbian prisoners in order to sell their vital organs on the world market. Subscribe now! If you find our site useful please: Click here to make a donation. CounterPunch books and t-shirts make great presents. Order CounterPunch By Email For Only $35 a Year!
Today's Stories January 21 - 23, 2011 Laura Carlsen January 20, 2011 Cecilia Zarate-Laun Vicente Navarro José Pertierra Patrick Cockburn Russell Mokhiber Denis O'Hearn Ira Chernus Mark Weisbrot Dave Lindorff Sam Smith Website of the Day January 19, 2011 Kathleen Christison Esam Al-Amin José Pertierra Dean Baker John Walsh Laura Flanders Joe Mowrey Stewart J. Lawrence Mickey Z. Carl Finamore Website of the Day January 18, 2011 Michael Hudson Mark Rudd Sasan Fayazmanesh Gareth Porter Jonathan Cook Ralph Nader Russell Mokhiber Mike Whitney Steve Breyman Clancy Sigal Website of the Day January 17, 2011 Frank Bardacke Andrew Cockburn Jason Hribal Bill Quigley Max Ajl William Loren Katz Andrew Levine Monica Lewinsky, Where Are You Now That We Need You ... Again? Max Kantar Yvonne Ridley B. R. Gowani Alan Farago Website of the Day January 14 -16, 2011 Alexander Cockburn Petra Bartosiewicz Jeffrey St. Clair Walden Bello Yvonne Ridley Thomas H. Naylor Rannie Amiri Jennifer Van Bergen Jonathan Feldman Alison Weir Conn Hallinan Saul Landau Fawzia Afzal-Khan Dead in My Tracks: Salmaan Taseer, the Mullah of Bourbon St and Freud's Uncanny Beatrice Lindstrom Stewart J. Lawrence Christopher Brauchli Sheldon Richman Richard Ward Ann Jones Carmelo Ruiz-Marrero Alan Farago Jonathan W. Martin David Macaray Daniel Gross Kieran Manjarrez Laura Flanders David Ker Thomson Linh Dinh Yves Engler M. Shahid Alam Dr. Susan Block Ramzy Baroud Billy Wharton Ron Jacobs Eric Walberg Charles R. Larson Mark Scaramella David Yearsley Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend January 13, 2011 Neve Gordon Franklin Lamb Linn Washington, Jr. Rob Prince Sasha Kramer Joel Olson Dean Baker Nicola Nasser Russell Mokhiber Stephen Lendman Charles R. Larson Website of the Day January 12, 2011 Franklin Spinney Paul Craig Roberts Jennifer Loewenstein Vijay Prashad Tanya Golash-Boza Diane Shammas Manuel Garcia, Jr. Ralph Nader John V. Walsh Niranjan Ramakrishnan Website of the Day January 11, 2011 Alan Nasser / William D. Hartung Mike Whitney Israel Shamir Anthony DiMaggio Bill Quigley / Sam Smith Joseph Massad Randall Amster Laura Flanders Bouthaina Shaaban Website of the Day January 10, 2011 Alexander Cockburn Bill Quigley Paul Craig Roberts Chris Floyd Andrew Levine Shared Delusions: Obama Apologists and Tea Partiers Lawrence Davidson The New Radicals in Congress: Show Trials for American Muslims? Dave Lindorff Yvonne Ridley Fidel Castro Paul Hillier Carl Finamore Website of the Day January 7 - 9, 2011 Alexander Cockburn Jeffrey St. Clair Helen Thomas David Rosen Kevin Alexander Gray Franklin Lamb Mike Whitney Will Parrish Chase Madar Christophe Wargny Ron Jacobs Murtaza Razvi Ramzy Baroud William Astore Raymond J. Lawrence Saul Landau Col. Douglas MacGregor Firmin DeBrabander Missy Beattie David Ker Thomson Fred Gardner Devon G. Peña Christopher Brauchli Walter Brasch John Blair Paul Hillier Tom H. Hastings Gerald E. Scorse Carla Blank Charles R. Larson Kim Nicolini David Yearsley Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend January 6, 2011 James Bovard Mike Whitney Dean Baker Yvonne Ridley Tom Engelhardt Michael Winship Russell Mokhiber Laura Flanders Website of the Day January 5, 2011 Richard Neville Patrick Cockburn Mike Whitney Israel Shamir Steve Breyman Ralph Nader Farzana Versey Martha Rosenberg Mike Roselle Dave Lindorff Danny Lucia Website of the Day January 4, 2011 Mike Whitney Ralph Nader Gareth Porter Lawrence Wittner After START: Where Does Nuclear Disarmament Go From Here? Christophe Ventura Russell Mokhiber Ray McGovern David Macaray Sheldon Richman Michael Simmons Website of the Day January 3, 2011 Eric Toussaint Patrick Cockburn Ann Robertson / William Blum Jean Casella / Harry Targ Linn Washington, Jr. Fred Gardner Lawrence Davidson Bouthaina Shaaban Website of the Day December 31, 2010 - January 2, 2011 Alexander Cockburn Goodbye to 2010, Year of the Tiger, Hello to 2011, Year of the Rabbit Jeffrey St. Clair Behzad Yaghmaian Thomas Naylor Christopher Brauchli Robert Bryce Joanne Mariner Will Parrish / Mike Whitney Ramzy Baroud Rannie Amiri Alan Farago Linh Dinh Martha Rosenberg Drug Industry: Interests in Conflict Franklin Lamb Ron Jacobs Brian Tierney Israel Shamir Jess Guh David Ker Thomson Missy Beattie Dan Bacher David Macaray Shepherd Bliss Charles R. Larson Dan White Joshua Sperber Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend December 30, 2010 Michael Teitelman Jennifer Van Bergen Douglas Valentine Jorge Mariscal Denis G. Rancourt Paul Craig Roberts Dave Lindorff Mary Lynn Cramer Anthony Papa Website of the Day
December 29, 2010 Bill Quigley James Bovard Stewart J. Lawrence Yvonne Ridley David Swanson John V. Walsh Fidel Castro Julie Hilden Website of the Day December 28, 2010 P. Sainath Jonathan Cook Paul Craig Roberts Jennifer Van Bergen Ralph Nader David Macaray Bill Manson David Krieger Stephanie Van Hook / Michael Nagler Mitchel Cohen Website of the Day December 27, 2010 Bill Hatch Uri Avnery Lawrence Davidson Allen Mendenhall Fred Gardner Mark Weisbrot Sherwood Ross David Michael Green Eric Patton Mark Scaramella Website of the Day December 24-26, 2010 Alexander Cockburn Chellis Glendinning Eugene Coyle Will Parrish Joanne Mariner William Loren Katz Brian M. Downing Michael Leonardi Ramzy Baroud Saul Landau Linn Washington Jr. Christopher Brauchli Rannie Amiri Ronnie Cummins Missy Beattie Linh Dinh Rev. William E. Alberts Harvey Wasserman Chris Genovali / David Ker Thomson Robert Roth Ron Jacobs Myles Hoenig Charles R. Larson David Yearsley Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend December 23, 2010 Bill Quigley / Peter Lee Gareth Porter Dean Baker Hayden Janssen Yves Engler Laura Flanders David Macaray Farzana Versey Website of the Day December 22, 2010 Joe Mangano Uri Avnery Jennifer Van Bergen Lawrence Wittner John V. Whitbeck Stewart J. Lawrence Linh Dinh Rebecca Solnit Franklin Lamb Sherwood Ross Website of the Day
December 21, 2010 Ralph Nader Larry Portis Sasan Fayazmanesh Sam Smith Sheldon Richman Alice Slater Julie Hilden Willie L. Pelote, Sr. Binoy Kampmark Laura Flanders Website of the Day
December 20, 2010 Pam Martens Patrick Cockburn Bill Quigley Bruce Jackson Max Blumenthal Mike Whitney Carl Finamore Greg Moses Fidel Castro Paul Craig Roberts John Severino Sama Adnan Website of the Day December 17 - 19, 2010 Alexander Cockburn Ismael Hossein-Zadeh Franklin Spinney Gareth Porter Clarence Lusane Eric Stoner John Carroll, MD Nick Dearden / Robert Alvarez Saul Landau Rannie Amiri Ramzy Baroud Chuck Collins Ron Jacobs Charlotte Dennett John Blair David Ker Thomson Sherry Wolf David Macaray Jennifer Van Bergen Martha Rosenberg Sam Smith Missy Beattie Harvey Wasserman Laura Flanders Randall Amster Ron Ridenour Dr. Suzy Block Charles R. Larson David Yearsley Poets' Basement Website of the Day December 16, 2010 Alan Farago Dean Baker Peter Lee Jospeh Nevins Norman Girvan Michael Winship Robert Jensen Binoy Kampmark Website of the Day December 15, 2010 Diana Johnstone James Bovard Conn Hallinan Vijay Prashad Robert Weissman Stephan Salisbury Fred Gardner Joshua Frank Anthony Papa Steven Higgs Afghan Youth Peace Volunteers / Afghans for Peace Website of the Day
December 14, 2010 Norm Kent Mike Whitney Maximilian Forte Franklin C. Spinney Ralph Nader David Macaray Ali Khan / Lawrence Davidson Stewart J. Lawrence Cecil Brown
December 13, 2010 Patrick Cockburn Tariq Ali Jonathan Cook Israel's War on Children Uri Avnery Russell Mokhiber Patrick Bond David Smith-Ferri The December Review: Rubbish on Afghanistan Bob Sirois Danny Muller Randall Amster Website of the Day
December 10 - 12, 2010 Alexander Cockburn Peter Linebaugh Mike Whitney Thomas Volscho Joe Bageant John Barth, Jr. Jeffrey Sommers Jonathan Cook Robert Alvarez Rannie Amiri Franklin Lamb Dean Baker Afghan Youth Peace Volunteers Aurel / Pierre Daum Ramzy Baroud Michael Winship David Ker Thomson Ron Jacobs Christopher Brauchli Missy Beattie Dennis Loo Harvey Wasserman Ingmar Lee Thomas H. Naylor Farzana Versey Ronnie Cummins Sherwood Ross Don Monkerud Stephen Martin Charles R. Larson David Yearsley CP Newswire Poets' Basement Randall and Hahn Website of the Weekend December 9, 2010 Pam Martens Wajahat Ali Sasha Kramer Fatima Bhutto Jimmy Johnson Laura Carlsen Binoy Kampmark Anthony Papa Website of the Day December 8, 2010 Michael Hudson Patrick Cockburn Eric Walberg Mike Roselle Greg Moses Diane Christian Fidel Castro Linn Washington James McEnteer Website of the Day December 7, 2010 Chris Floyd Gareth Porter / Dean Baker Gregory Elich Ralph Nader M. Shahid Alam Dave Lindorff Information Terrorists? David Macaray Linda Ueki Absher Manuel Garcia, Jr. Website of the Day December 6, 2010 Michael Hudson Paul Craig Roberts The US Government's Frontal Assault on Freedom Mike Whitney Sasan Fayazmanesh Steve Breyman Davey D Neve Gordon Greg Moses Mark Weisbrot Ben Terrall Website of the Day December 3 -5, 2010 Alexander Cockburn Darwin Bond-Graham Andy Kroll William Blum Rannie Amiri Ray McGovern Saul Landau / Ramzy Baroud P. Sainath John Carroll, M.D. David Rosen Steven Colatrella Thomas I. Palley Francis Shor Russell Mokhiber Bank Power Mark Weisbrot John V. Whitbeck Sherry Wolf Ronnie Cummins Michael Winship Ron Jacobs Nilofar Suhrawardy Missy Beattie Bill Manson Linh Dinh Bruce E. Levine John Grant David Macaray Yves Engler / Charles R. Larson Scott Borchert Harry Clark David Yearsley Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend December 2, 2010 Michael W. Hudson Paul Craig Roberts Franklin C. Spinney Benjamin Dangl Uri Avnery Mike Whitney Russell Mokhiber David Macaray Ed Moloney Brian McKenna Website of the Day
December 1, 2010 Gareth Porter Wikileaks Exposes Complicity of the Press Paul Craig Roberts Russ Wellen Nikolas Kozloff Conn Hallinan Sheldon Richman Rich Broderick David Solnit Farzana Versey Charles M. Young Charles R. Larson Website of the Day November 30, 2010 Ralph Nader Paul Craig Roberts Bill Quigley Jonathan Cook Dean Baker James McEnteer Tom Engelhardt Sherwood Ross Gina Ulysse Bill Manson Website of the Day
November 29, 2010 Paul Craig Roberts Israel Shamir Mike Whitney Lawrence Davidson Winslow Wheeler / John Carroll, MD P. Sainath Carl Finamore David Macaray Dave Lindorff Website of the Day
November 26 - 28, 2010 Alexander Cockburn Winslow T. Wheeler Ramzy Baroud Harry Browne Bill Quigley / Saul Landau Brian Cloughley Fidel Castro Francis Shor Steve Heilig Terrence Paupp Brenda Norrell Missy Beattie Linh Dinh Christopher Brauchli Eric Walberg Ellen Taylor Ron Jacobs Bill Manson Harvey Wasserman Walter Brasch Michael Dickinson Ingmar Lee Gwyneth Leech David Ker Thomson Charles R. Larson Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend November 25, 2010 Michael Hudson Mike Whitney Gareth Porter Sarah Anderson Karl Grossman David Ker Thomson Rajesh Makwana / Adam Parsons Charles R. Larson Website of the Day
November 24, 2010 Jeffrey St. Clair Paul Craig Roberts James Ridgeway Invasion of the Body Scanners: Is TSA Spreading Cancer? Michael Scott Nick Dearden Russell Mokhiber Daniel Moss Farzana Versey Yasin Gaber Dan Beaton Website of the Day November 23, 2010 Pam Martens Patrick Cockburn Ben Rosenfeld / Franklin C. Spinney Dean Baker Ralph Nader Ray McGovern George Wuerthner Don Monkerud Clare Bayard Website of the Day
November 22, 2010 Michael Hudson James Abourezk Paul Craig Roberts Sasan Fayazmanesh Richard Forno Gary Leupp Martha Rosenberg Lawrence Davidson Patrick Bond Michael Dickinson Website of the Day November 19 - 21, 2010 Alexander Cockburn Jeffrey St. Clair Mike Whitney Joanne Mariner Gareth Porter Karen Greenberg Thomas Christie, Pierre Sprey, Franklin Spinney et al. Rannie Amiri Dr. Jim Morgan Haiti's New Normal: Dispatch from Cite Soleil Lawrence Swaim Ramzy Baroud Ron Jacobs Robert Alvarez Russell Mokhiber P. Sainath David Macaray Carl Finamore Brian Tierney Franklin Lamb Gerald E. Scorse Joshua Brollier Missy Beattie Stewart J. Lawrence Brenda Norrell Christopher Brauchli Carol Polsgrove David Ker Thomson Dave Lindorff Jeff Deasy Bill Manson Clifton Ross Charles R. Larson Twain: the Last Word, One Hundred Years Later Richard Estes David Yearsley Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend November 18, 2010 Diana Johnstone Mike Whitney Behzad Yaghmaian Kenneth E. Hartman Norman Solomon Michael Winship Patrick Bond Joel S. Hirschhorn Website of the Day November 17, 2010 Vicente Navarro James Bovard Jonathan Cook Dean Baker Ralph Nader Nick Turse Sherry Wolf Alienation 101: the Online Learning Rip Off Judith Scherr Peter Certo Website of the Day
November 16, 2010 Pam Martens Richard Forno Gareth Porter Harry Browne Peter Lee Alan Farago Franklin Lamb Frank Green Sheldon Richman Thomas H. Naylor Website of the Day November 15, 2010 Michael Hudson Steve Hendricks Paul Craig Roberts Harvey Wasserman Lawrence Davidson Clancy Sigal David Macaray Tom Engelhardt Steven Fake Website of the Day November 12 - 14, 2010 Alexander Cockburn Patrick Cockburn Mike Whitney Ismael Hossein-Zadeh Dean Baker Gareth Porter William E. Alberts Bill Hatch Jonathan Cook Patrick Madden Mystifying the Crisis: Deadlock at the G20 Ramzy Baroud Rannie Amiri James Zogby Ron Jacobs Mark Weisbrot Tanya Golash-Boza Paul Wright Steve Early Martha Rosenberg Celia McAteer Larry Portis Michael Winship Brian McKenna Gerald E. Scorse Christopher Brauchli Roberto Rodriguez Dr. Susan Block J. T. Cassidy Linh Dinh Farzana Versey David Ker Thomson Phil Rockstroh Charles R. Larson David Swanson Saul Landau Kim Nicolini David Yearsley Poets' Basement Website of the Day
November 11, 2010 Peter Linebaugh Paul Craig Roberts Licensed to Kill Bill Quigley David Macaray Dissing the Boss: the NLRB Files a Landmark Complaint on Free Expression in the Workplace Liaquat Ali Khan / Jasmine Abou-Kassem Dedrick Muhammad Robert Bryce Alan Farago Website of the Day November 10, 2010 Allan Nairn Dean Baker Nicola Nasser Missy Beattie Sergio Ferrari Patrick Cockburn Dave Lindorff Mumia: New Lawyer, New Round Sherwood Ross Joshua Frank Website of the Day November 9, 2010 Uri Avnery Mike Whitney Jordan Flaherty Afshin Rattansi Annie Gell Dean Baker Dave Lindorff Stewart J. Lawrence Walter Brasch Website of the Day November 8, 2010 Paul Craig Roberts Thomas Healy David Swanson David Smith-Ferri Ralph Nader Ray McGovern Torture Sans Regrets: Bush's Confessions John Feffer Christopher Ketcham Website of the Day November 5 - 7, 2010 Alexander Cockburn Vijay Prashad Patrick Cockburn Darwin Bond-Graham
Mike Whitney Linn Washington, Jr. Rannie Amiri Ramzy Baroud Larry Portis Gary Leupp William Loren Katz Brian Cloughley Mark Weisbrot Rubén M. Lo Vuolo, Daniel Raventós / Pablo Yanes Joseph Nevins Neve Gordon Alan Farago Stewart J. Lawrence James R. King Ron Jacobs Franklin Lamb James McEnteer Richard Phelps Saul Landau David Ker Thomson The Long Argument Evelyn Pringle Joseph G. Ramsey Until Pigs Fly: the Morning After With Michael Moore Stanley Heller Missy Beattie Harvey Wasserman Billy Wharton Shamus Cooke Linh Dinh Windy Cooler Charles R. Larson Phyllis Pollack David Yearsley Website of the Weekend November 4, 2010 Doug Peacock Andrew Cockburn Iain Boal Paul Craig Roberts Chase Madar Dave Lindorff Russell Mokhiber Laura Flanders Website of the Day November 3, 2010 Alexander Cockburn Franklin C. Spinney Chris Floyd Dissatisfied Mind: Flickers of Hope in a Deadly Political Cycle William Blum Sheldon Richman Stephen Soldz Mark Weisbrot Stewart J. Lawrence Manuel Garcia, Jr. Election Night in Oakland Norman Solomon Website of the Day November 2, 2010 Vincent Navarro Ishmael Reed Uri Avnery Mark Driscoll Mike Whitney Linh Dinh David Macaray Randall Amster Wikilessons: War is a Joke, But It Isn't Funny Betsy Ross Yves Engler Website of the Day
November 1, 2010 Ted Honderich Steven Higgs John Ross Dean Baker Ralph Nader Justin E. H. Smith Marjorie Cohn Scott Boehm Brian Tierney Trish Kahle Martha Rosenberg Bathrobe Erectus: Feting Hugh Hefner Website of the Day
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Weekend Edition "There's Nothing Like Having Your Own Government Discriminate Against You"Will the Tea Party Congress Block Justice for Black Farmers?By HEATHER GRAY In November 2010 Congress finally passed a bill that would appropriate monies for the lawsuit filed by blacks against the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). It was a long time coming. The passage was not without conflict in the Senate and critics in the House of Representatives but also importantly coupled with the support of the Obama administration and countless other representatives and senators who prevailed in the vote. With the advent of a House of Representatives controlled by conservative Republicans, however, concerns are now raised about the implementation of the lawsuit. The class action lawsuit was originally filed in 1997. It is now called Pigford v Vilsack (after Tim Pigford, a Black farmer in North Carolina, and Tom Vilsack, Obama’s Secretary of Agriculture). The suit was against the USDA because of decades of ruthless discrimination against black farmers, including those who were attempting to farm, by staff in the USDA offices throughout the country. The funding recently approved by Congress is for a follow-up lawsuit generated by the inadequacies of the original settlement of the Pigford lawsuit. The follow-up lawsuit (hereinafter referred to as "Pigford II") is for individuals who filed “late” petitions in the Pigford settlement under authority granted by the U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia. Judge Paul Friedman provided the opportunity for farmers throughout the country who had not heard about the settlement in time to file a claim within the original deadline of October 12, 1999, to submit petitions explaining why they missed the deadline. Friedman gave them until September 15, 2000 to do so. To prevail as a claimant in the lawsuit, the individual had to attest to three major criteria: (1) that he or she is a black farmer; (2) Indicate that he or she did seek assistance from the USDA (a loan or other kind of assistance) in the period 1981 to 1996 but was denied the assistance, and believed that the denial was discriminatory; and (3) Indicate that he or she filed a formal complaint with the USDA, attended a USDA listening session or similar meeting, or complained to some government official in his or her community that he or she had experienced this discrimination when attempting to receive a service from the USDA. Another critical element for each claim was that the claimant had to provide the name of a “similarly situated white farmer”, in his or her community or county, who received the same type of loan or service from the USDA that the claimant was denied.The name of a “similarly situated white farmer” will not be required in Pigford II, but the three qualifying criteria remain and the claimant will have to show that he or she petitioned to file a late claim under the original Pigford settlement. Like the original settlement, Pigford II has two tracks – A and B. Track A is for those who do not have significant records of the discrimination they experienced and Track B for those who do. Depending on whether sufficient funds are available, Track A claimants who prevail receive $50,000 plus other benefits such as debt relief, if the debt was related to the discrimination. Track B claimants can receive payment for actual damage they suffered up to $250,000. In the original Pigford settlement, by 1999, 22,551 individuals were eligible claimants in Track A. There were 170 Track B eligible claimants. To date there has been a total of $1,012,079,871 in relief for Track A claimants. In Pigford II, approximately 65,989 individuals filed petitions to file late claims in the original settlement. Of those only 3 per cent (2,260) were found eligible to file a claim in Pigford – the reasons for why they missed the original deadline were accepted such as being in the hospital, struggling with the impact of a hurricane etc. This leaves a staggering 63,870 (97 per cent of late claimants; and over 75 per cent of all claimants) individuals who were denied the opportunity to file a claim in the Pigford lawsuit. As these thousands of individuals have not been able to file their claims, the number of those who might be eligible claimants is not yet known. In the 2008 Farm Bill, largely thanks to the Congressional Black Caucus, Congress included a provision that offered the opportunity for these late petitioners to file their claims and Congress has now finally provided $1.25 billion dollars for their relief. Representative James Clyburn (D-SC) and Senators Harry Reid (D-NE) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) stand out for their exceptional leadership in the House and Senate for helping to get the funding bill passed. The reasons for the Pigford lawsuits being filed are compelling, profound and sad. As the late attorney J.L. Chestnut and former class counsel of the Pigford lawsuit said once, “There is perhaps nothing like having your own government discriminate against you.” The USDA’s farm loan program began decades ago in response to the needs of small farmers suffering from the effects of the Great Depression. It is considered the lending institution of last resort for farmers who are not able to get credit elsewhere. The USDA provides information about its programs and applications for credit in just about every county in the country. Yet, since its inception in virtually every county the USDA staff has discriminated again black farmers and women. This has resulted over the decades in individuals losing their land, losing their livelihood and lost opportunities overall. Some of the most egregious examples of discrimination include blacks, as taxpayers it should be said, (1) not being provided information or applications at USDA offices about farm programs or loans available through the USDA– this includes not being able to even meet with USDA staff to inquire about the USDA programs, having special days for blacks in USDA offices where no information or assistance is provided and being treated disrespectfully; (2) not receiving even consideration of loans from the USDA for crop production or land ownership even if they have been applied for – sometimes having their applications thrown in the garbage by USDA managers right in front of the black applicant, or the managers not sending the application for farm loans to the USDA county committee for consideration; (3) receiving loan money too late to plant a crop. The period for claimants to cite the discrimination they experienced is between 1981 and 1996. The reason being because this time period roughly encompasses the years after President Ronald Reagan's USDA abolished its Office of Civil Rights but before the Clinton administration reinstated the office. So thanks to the Reagan administration, when individuals sent in complaints to the USDA about the egregious treatment they had received in their agency’s offices, there was no one to consider the problems or attempt to resolve them. Thousands of complaints gathered dust in boxes at the USDA. The Farmers Legal Action Group and the Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund filed suit against the USDA in the early 1990’s to obtain access to those complaints. They prevailed. Then Clinton’s Secretary of Agriculture, Dan Glickman, ultimately held listening sessions across the country in the 1990’s to hear from farmers about their problems with USDA. This was after he heard numerous complaints from black farm groups such as the Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund and the National Black Farmers Association and individuals such as farmer Tim Pigford. Hundreds of individuals came before the Secretary to share their experiences of discrimination. As a result, the Pigford lawsuit was filed and settled. Glickman stated that under his watch the USDA would end its role as a plantation. All indications are that this hasn’t happened yet. (In fact, while black farmers led the way, there are now lawsuits against the USDA by women, Latino and Native American farmers.) In the meantime, George Bush became president as the Pigford lawsuit proceeded and claims were processed. And while the Office of Civil Rights remained in place under Bush, it was when Obama became president that we learned from Secretary Vilsack’s office and Director of the Office of Civil Rights, Dr. Joe Leonard that some 14,000 complaints were sent to USDA during the Bush years of which only 2 were settled. Secretary Vilsack’s office is now looking into all those complaints. (The problem is that there is a two-year statute of limitation on resolving complaints and Congress would have to lift the statute on these complaints as it did for the original Pigford lawsuit.) There have been comments decrying the vitriolic statements and divisiveness in the country after the assassination attempt of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords in Arizona. As efforts were being made to fund the Pigford II, this same kind of vitriol and insinuating comments were made by some in Congress against blacks in the original Pigford settlement and those applying as late filers. One, by Representative Stephen King of Iowa, was that if there has been so much discrimination then why hasn’t anyone at USDA been fired because of this. Many in agriculture have asked the same question. Why has no one been fired for his or her discriminatory behavior? In fact, it appears that the only person fired from USDA for anything remotely related to racism was Shirley Sherrod in 2010 who was, in fact, attempting to address the problems of racism within rural communities and at the USDA. Regarding the lack of repercussions for racist behavior, those at USDA have told us that the Bush administration had a no-fault policy regarding USDA staff. If someone on staff was accused of discrimination all they had to do was sign a paper excusing themselves. We are also told that Obama’s USDA will change this policy. We do not yet know what the policy will be. Representatives Stephen King and Michelle Bachman, the darlings of the Tea Party, also claimed massive fraud in the original Pigford lawsuit. There is absolutely nothing to substantiate this. If anything, the lawsuit has been managed exceptionally well. Secretary Vilsack has stated, in his review, that according to his findings only 10 out of the thousands of claimants might be questionable and even those findings or questions about the 10 are not substantiated. Nevertheless, Senators Tom Coburn (R-OK) and Mike Johanns (R-NE), to name a few, insisted that the bill that recently passed Congress require even more stringent oversight and audits of the claims process than has been the case in the past or in any of the other lawsuits filed against the USDA – most of which are not overseen by Congress but are working their way through the courts. Johanns, it must be noted that, was one of George W. Bush’s Agriculture Secretaries. One wonder if some in Congress are attempting to punish black farmers who have led the way in demanding justice and fairness from their own government. Nevertheless, it also needs to be stressed that while the black community has always played a leading role in seeking justice, others have always followed in their footsteps as we are now seeing with the numerous lawsuits filed against the USDA. This echoes the civil rights movement in the 1960’s when the black community led the way in demanding civil rights that was followed by almost every discriminated group in the country. It needs to be stressed further that everyone benefits when injustices are exposed and especially when they are resolved. This is democracy at its core. As Martin Luther King wisely stated in his letter from the Birmingham jail in 1963 “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere”. Heather Gray is the producer of "Just Peace" on WRFG-Atlanta 89.3 FM covering local, regional, national and international news. She has been involved in agriculture advocacy and communications for 20 years in the United States and internationally. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia and can be reached at hmcgray@earthlink.net
Exclusively in the New Print Issue of CounterPunch "Ending US-Sponsored Torture Forever" Joann Wypijewski reports on the growth of the U.S. torture archipelago and on the church-led campaign led by the National Religious Campaign Against Torture (NRCAT) which is striking a spark amid the darkness. Also in this latest newsletter, Diana Johnstone explores the one of the sinister monuments of the Clinton years: Kosovo, whose gangster premier runs a criminal enterprise which has murdered Serbian prisoners in order to sell their vital organs on the world market. Subscribe now! If you find our site useful please: Click here to make a donation. CounterPunch books and t-shirts make great presents. Order CounterPunch By Email For Only $35 a Year!
Recent Print Issues, Still Available for Purchase
Is the Next Great Awakening at Hand? The First Great Awakening led after many years to the American and Jeffersonian Revolutions. The Second Great Awakening led, after many years, to the Civil War and Abolition. The Third Great Awakening led, after setbacks, to the Populist and then Progressive Movements. The Fourth Great Awakening led to the New Deal The Fifth Great Awakening led to the second Reconstruction, the Great Society, Feminism, and social upheavals. Is The Sixth Great Awakening now due? What quarter will it come from? Read Mason Gaffney’s extraordinary history and predictions. Order Past Editions of CounterPunch in "Sample Issues"
The Hidden History of Animal Resistance Don’t miss Jeffrey St Clair’s riveting account of how animals fight back against cruelty and exploitation. This is history written from the end of the bear’s chain, from inside the tiger’s cage, from the depths of the orca tank. Read too the forgotten sagas of medieval animal trials, where non-human species were given rights, their consciousness acknowledged. Also in this exciting new newsletter, Larry Portis on why Sarkozy is getting away with it. Order Past Editions of CounterPunch in "Sample Issues"
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