Dr. John Boyd, Fox News screenshot, https://www.foxbusiness.com/video/6340453772112
On the campaign trail President Joe Biden has been visiting farmers and doing photo ops, but according to Dr. John Boyd Jr., the president of the National Black Farmers Association, Biden has failed to keep a campaign promise from 2020 to met with him once he’s been in the White House. That was the last time Boyd met with Biden. Boyd says he’s still waiting for the followup meeting.
During an interview with Fox News on Nov. 3, Boyd noted Biden’s recent trips to farms and said he “missed my invite.”
“It’s not working for us, and the President broke his promise to meet with me to discuss why [Black farmers] didn’t get the $5 billion that was promised to our members of our organization and [Biden] never answered the cry to stop farm foreclosures,” Boyd said.
Despite this, he said he would still like to meet with Biden.
“I would like to meet with the President to find out what he’s going to do to help these farmers who are losing their farms,” Boyd said, but he also noted that his organization is looking to back another candidate for the 2024 election.
He noted the organization backed Biden in 2020. “We supported this President, and now…the President isn’t even considering reaching back to people who supported him; we’re open to other candidates…”
Biden is also facing a lawsuit from Boyd and other Black farmers who claim that the White House reneged on its promise to provide debt relief, leaving thousands at risk of foreclosure on their lands.
Dr. Boyd founded the NBFA in February 1995. The association was established to help Black farmers facing foreclosure due to longstanding racial discrimination by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The NBFA’s mission revolves around advocating for civil rights, land retention, and addressing various issues affecting Black farmers.
Boyd is a third-generation farmer, born on Sept. 4, 1965, in Baskerville, Virginia. He operates Boyd Farms, spanning 1,500 acres across three farms. He grows soybeans, corn, and wheat and raises beef cattle. He advocates for improving the lives of farmers and eliminating discriminatory practices.
Boyd Jr. has repeatedly sought a meeting with President Biden to discuss the pledged debt relief for farmers of color, which was supposed to amount to 120% of their debt. Despite the President assuring Boyd of a real-time meeting last July, the administration repealed the provision, leading to a breach of trust between Black and other farmers of color and the President. Boyd asserts that the administration failed to uphold its promise to a group of people who had supported President Biden.
The numbers of Black farmers are dwindling. In 1910, about 14 percent of U.S. farmers were Black, owning more than 16 million acres. Now, according to the latest Census of Agriculture, only one in 100 farmers is Black, owning less than 5 million acres, PBS reported.
Black farmers are calling for a comprehensive Farm Foreclosure Moratorium that includes foreclosure protection for USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) Farm Ownership Direct and Guaranteed Loans, as well as other Agricultural Loans with private lenders, Boyd noted in a press release.
In the press release, Boyd noted he would not be supporting Biden for reelection.
Dr. John Boyd, Fox News screenshot, https://www.foxbusiness.com/video/6340453772112
