Local NewsAwaiting USDA loans: Hispanic farmers claim agency discriminated
El Paso Times
By Diana Washington Valdez

ANTHONY, Texas -- Hispanic farmers on Friday told a U.S. Department of Agriculture official that the federal agency in charge of helping farmers stay in business discriminated against them whenever they applied for loans. About 20 farmers from Texas and New Mexico met with Joe Leonard, the new assistant secretary for USDA's civil-rights division, at the Red Rooster Cafe in Anthony.

Leonard, a sixth-generation Texan, heard a list of complaints that date from the 1980s, some of which formed the basis for a lawsuit against the USDA. The suit alleges that the USDA's Farm Service Agency discriminated against Hispanic farmers in the awarding of operating and disaster loans between 1981 and 2000.

The plaintiffs include more than 100 farmers in several states." I cannot comment on the litigation," Leonard said during a breakfast meeting at the cafe. "I am traveling across the country, listening to farmers and their concerns."

Farmers Salvador Flores and Hector Flores, who grow pecans and alfalfa in the Fabens area, said nothing had changed since the lawsuit was filed nine years ago." It's been the same always, year in and year out," Salvador Flores said. "For example, my brother applied for a loan in March, and he received it in November, when it no longer did him any good." Another farmer, Joe Tellez, said he applied for a loan in December at the agency's office in Las Cruces but had not received it. Other farmers said such delays had caused some farm operators to lose valuable crops and equipment, and even their farms and homes. They said their Anglo counterparts receive loans on a timely basis. In certain cases, some of the farmers have had to put up their entire properties, including homes and automobiles, for collateral, even if they have good loan payment histories.

Group members also alleged they often received smaller loans than they requested. Ed Provencio, a farmer in Doña Ana County, said systematic discrimination had enabled bigger operators to gobble up smaller foreclosed farms. "The developers also want our lands and our water rights," he said. After the meeting, Leonard went to visit a couple of farms near Anthony, and he planned other stops at USDA offices in the region.

Twelve years ago, the USDA documented complaints of minority farmers in its report, "Civil Rights at the United States Department of Agriculture: A Report by the Civil Rights Action Team." "Many minority and limited-resource farmers believe that USDA has participated in a conspiracy to take their land," according to the 1997 report. "They charge that USDA has long tolerated discrimination in the distribution of program benefits and misuse of power to influence land ownership and farm profitability. "The report said strong local control of USDA services, including oversight by political appointees with divided loyalties, stood in the way of agency compliance with civil-rights policies.

Stephen Hill, a lawyer in Washington who represents the Hispanic farmers, said the time had ended for government listening sessions. "The USDA has admitted and documented the discrimination against minority farmers, including against Hispanics, blacks, Native Americans and women," Hill said. "The Congress has urged the USDA secretary to settle these claims in a just and expeditious manner, and (Agriculture) Secretary (Tom) Vilsack has said he wants to resolve the pending cases. It's time to get this done. "In 2003, the federal government settled a similar discrimination lawsuit filed by black farmers with $650 million for nearly 13,000 plaintiffs.

Since then, President Obama included more money for black farmers who had missed the deadline for the lawsuit. Hill said that Friday he filed an appeal that seeks a court ruling on the petition for class-action status. Previously, a federal judge had granted class-action status to the black farmers' lawsuit, but a different judge denied the same designation for the Hispanic farmers. "This is a hyper-technical matter only," Hill said. "No one, including USDA, has disputed the merits of the case. "The farmers at Friday's meeting said they hoped their pleas would get the attention of the new administration.

Diana Washington Valdez may be reached at dvaldez@elpasotimes.com; 546-6140.