Last night, I participated in a webinar hosted by the BIPOC Food and Farming Network (BFFN), based in Yellow Springs, Ohio. The Honorable Congresswoman Shontel Brown was the guest speaker.
As a novice agricultural historian, I have learned that there are many reasons that there are fewer Black farm owners in the United States than there were a century ago—mainly because of white southern terrorists who intimidated, murdered and chased people off of their land. In addition, agricultural policies rewarded nonBlack farmers and penalized Blacks.
The loans, grants and other benefits created at the state and national level policy trickled down to the local counties and cities, which is where the systemic racism took hold. No representation meant there was no one to complain to and get assistance from.
It’s not surprising that the same exclusion that farmers feel from the outside is happening inside the legislative branch. Thanks to Representative Brown for accepting the invitation to come in and answer questions and working on our behalf.
Thanks to organizations like BFFN, the National Black Farmers Association, and diverse organizations like the Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association for taking up the charge to invite, involve and increase the farm representation of Black, Indigenous and other people who identify with marginalized populations in Ohio. Representation matters.
It’s an exciting time for ColorBlindWork. We’re staring our seeds and when the snow melts, we’ll be prepping the soil! Lettuce, garlic, celery are a few veggies that we’ll be planting first!
ColorBlindWork People | Plants | Purpose 
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