As we gear up for Thanksgiving and all of the other festive holidays we love so much, this season. Please do not forget to salute the Black Farmers of America who are also helping to feed America.
The world does not say much about our brave black farmers, who also go out their way. Fighting harsh weather conditions to keep our dinner table in check.
In addition to that, there has never been any talk about people of color farming. Yet as sharecroppers, who did you actually think were tending the sheeps and corn?
I tried to reach out to National Black Farmer’s Association President John Boyd for his comments. As a result I found a little bit of information on his history and mission:
HISTORY
The National Black Farmers Association Incorporated is a non-profit, community organization founded in February of 1995, by John Boyd, Jr., of Baskerville, Virginia, a third generation farmer who is determined to hold on to his heritage, and to save his farm from foreclosure caused by racial discrimination under the United States Department of Agriculture.
MISSION STATEMENT
To encourage the participation of small and disadvantaged farmers in gaining access to resources of state and federal programs administered by the United States Department of Agriculture. To communicate and educate our community through effective outreach and technical assistance.
John W. Boyd Jr. is a fourth generation farmer as well as one of America’s most effective defenders of civil rights. He has been featured in The Washington Post, “60 Minutes,” “Nightline,” CNN and as ABC News Tonight’s “Person of the Week.” He is a past nominee for the NAACP’s highest honor, The Springarn Award, and currently ranks as one of Ebony Magazine’s most influential African-Americans.
In 1995, Boyd founded the National Black Farmers Association after encountering the US Department of Agriculture’s discriminatory practices first-hand and meeting many more black farmers who shared this experience.
How Blacks Were Robbed/The Atlantic/You Tube
Rap and farming:
In retrospect, farming is getting so widely popular, now that a lot of people are choosing to go vegan. Look at rapper Waka Flocka Flame, according to XXL Magazine, the artist is not leaving rap, but he is teaching himself how to farm.
According to First and Pen, former NBA star Amar’e Stoudemire is also tending the crops. Basketball Network: According to Stoudemire, working on the farm also feels like working out in the gym, where “you gotta work through when you’re tired”
Amar’e the farmer
Stoudemire last played an NBA game in 2016. A rumored return came after a few years, but nothing materialized; instead, the six-time NBA All-Star wound up taking his talents to his nearly 200-acre farm in Dutchess County, N.Y. where he “raises Black Angus cattle and other livestock.”
And I must tell you, when I saw this, I immediately laughed like we all do. We never believe that our own people of color could be interested in farming.
As a result of many states legalizng cultivation of marijuana, I bet we will see a surge in farming. Plant some weed, plant some corn and greens.lol
So, while you are giving thanks this week, also give praise to our wonderful Black farmers. You will never know what they have cultivated to your table.
More:
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