Folks,

Over the last century, discrimination by the United States Department of Agriculture has robbed Black farmers and their families of millions of acres of farmland — valued today to be at least $250 billion to $350 billion. It’s time we put an end to this discrimination and enact policies that cultivate the next generation of American Black farmers.

The Build Back Better bill is our opportunity to begin to rectify decades of discrimination, financial stress, and harm caused by the U.S. government.

For Black farmers fortunate enough to receive USDA loans despite its lending policies, insurmountable debt has meant that the small number of Black farmers still operating today has continued to dwindle.

That’s why Senator Raphael Warnock and I are pushing Democrats to cancel billions of dollars of debt for Black farmers and other economically struggling farmers in the Build Back Better Act — but we need to drum up public pressure to ensure these important provisions are not left by the wayside.

Before I explain how we got here, please add your name as a citizen co-sponsor of Sen. Warnock and my legislation to cancel $4 billion in debt for Black and minority farmers.

In 1920, there were nearly 1 million Black farmers in the U.S. Today, there are fewer than 50,000. Black farmers lost over 90% of their property between 1910 and 1997 — while white farmers lost just 2% in the same period.

And while the American Rescue Plan Act allocated the $4 billion in debt relief for Black farmers and other minority farmers that Sen. Warnock and I are pushing for, lawsuits in federal court have prevented our government from distributing this relief for the last nine months. The Senate must act.

That’s why I’m calling for the Build Back Better Act to once and for all cancel the outstanding USDA debt for Black farmers. It’s time we begin to rectify past injustices by alleviating financial stress and helping Black and minority farmers succeed — but I need your help to do it.

Add your name and become a citizen co-sponsor of Sen. Raphael Warnock and my legislation to show the Senate the Build Back Better Act needs to address this injustice.

Together, we can make a historic investment in our country’s farmers and begin to put an end to a terrible history of discrimination against Black farmers.

Thank you for making your voice heard on this important issue.

— Cory