Application thrown away without being reviewed
Gerlean Freeman remembers the day in the 1980s when she first visited the USDA’s Holly Springs, Mississippi office. “I was ignored for quite some time,” she said. When she was finally able to submit an application she was told dismissively that they would “look it over.” But when Freeman walked away from the desk, she saw one of the workers crumble up the application and throw it away. Too intimidated to complain, Freeman waited for several hours before being told that her loan was officially denied. With few other options, Freeman returned to the USDA office several times that year, reliving the same situation. Without access to USDA loans, Freeman’s family was unable to buy fertilizer and other basic farming necessities. As a result, her family had little to no money and frequently went hungry.
USDA denial destroys family’s farming tradition
Amos Walker was a 37-year-old cattle farmer in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1988 when he went to the USDA office in Morrilton, Arkansas to apply for an operating loan. When he handed the staff his application, he was immediately told that no money was available. As a result of the denial, Walker had to stop farming and work as a laborer to support his family. This was devastating to him. Walker came from a farming family. His father was a farmer. When his father died he left land to each of his children so they could continue the tradition. Walker even majored in agriculture in college. The USDA denials crushed his dream of becoming a successful farmer.
USDA denial forces mother to leave farming to support her children
Maggie Sanders was in her late 30s with four small children when she tried to obtain a loan from the USDA office in Columbus, Mississippi in the 1980s. When the loan was denied, she had to abandon farming all together because she couldn’t afford fertilizer, seeds and supplies. Without the necessary farming supplies, the land simply couldn’t produce enough crops to support her family.
White farmers get loans; black ones told “no money available”
Ella Mae and Johnnie Lee were living in Orrville, Alabama in the 1980s when Johnnie applied for operating loans in the USDA’s Selma, Alabama office. He wanted to use the funds to buy the land he was leasing, fix his tractor and buy supplies. He returned to the USDA office many times, each time being told there wasn’t any money available for loan. But Lee knew this wasn’t true because white farmers were receiving USDA loans at the same time. He argued the point, but was denied the opportunity to even fill out an application. As a result of the continual USDA denials, he wasn’t able to buy the land or even care for it. Eventually, Lee he had to give up farming. Reared in a farming family, Lee felt that he had no other options. The little income he received from his disability was used to support his family. His daughter, Rosa McCreary, said it was a struggle growing up in this situation. But they had to play the cards they were dealt and did everything they could to survive.
Daughter recalls father’s struggle to get USDA loans
Her father farmed vegetables and reared cattle in Plantersville, Alabama. She remembers the day in 1982 when her father went to the USDA office in Selma, Alabama to apply for a USDA loan. First, her father was told he didn’t have enough collateral. When he was able to prove that he did, her father was told that they weren’t taking anymore applications. Based on the USDA denial, her father had to give up farming and gradually sold all of the farm animals. The income the family received from farming halted and their financial situation was bad for many years. Both her mother and father had to take janitorial jobs to supplement the family’s meager income.
USDA rejection leaves family with land but no way to farm it
Lillie Ferrel was reared in the country and had farmed other people’s land from the time she was a young girl. As an adult in the 1980s, she contacted the USDA office in Elmo County, Alabama to get help with her own farm. Ferrel was initially told that she qualified for a loan. But when she actually showed up at the USDA office, she was denied a loan – without explanation. As a result, Ferrel did not have enough money to maintain her farm. She was left with land, but no resources to grow food or nourish livestock. This left Ferrel with very little money, food or clothing to support her three young children.