Race-based Biden-era disaster relief program ended by USDA

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced that it will end a Biden-era disaster relief program that allocates funds based on race and gender, as Just The News reported.

According to the agency’s formal notice, the USDA “has independently determined that it will no longer employ the race- and sex-based ‘socially disadvantaged’ designation to provide increased benefits based on race and sex in the programs at issue in this regulation.”

According to the Southeastern Legal Foundation, the USDA’s notice was a reaction to a victory in the case Strickland v. USDA.

The suit asserted that eight programs enacted during the Biden administration featured illegal bias in favor of certain individuals based on race and gender, excluding white male farmers.

Critic weighs in

Not everyone is pleased with the change, however. Lloyd Wright, an 84-year-old soybean farmer in Virginia, said his fellow Black farmers will be impacted negatively by the decision

The agency announced this month that it would eliminate the term “socially disadvantaged” for farmers or ranchers in minority groups, including black, Hispanic, Native American, and Asian groups.

“[The government] is going to take back the money — the little bit we were getting — and some of the outreach money will be clawed back,” Wright said.

He continued, “Because they’re eliminating ‘socially disadvantaged’ and anything else dealing with DEI [diversity, equity and inclusion].”

Pivotal ruling prompts shift

In explaining its decision, the USDA said, “the Strickland decision catalyzed the changes USDA is making in this rule to comport with the Constitution.”

Southeastern Legal Foundation president Kim Hermann, discussing the legal victory, said in a statement, “This is a big win for SLF, but most importantly, it is a huge win for America’s farmers.”

Hermann added, “We are very thankful for the USDA’s revisions to these programs, and we are incredibly proud that we were able to play a part in protecting America’s farmers from race- and sex-based discrimination.”

The legal advocacy group went on to explain why this has been seen as such a crucial victory, saying, “Farming is one of the most important and difficult occupations in the world, where their hard work directly impacts everyone.”

The statement concluded, “They have to be able to do their jobs without having to worry about DEI nonsense, and we hope to see any forms of discrimination in federal programs come to a complete halt.”