
There were almost a million black farmers in 1920 in America. Where did they go? - selimthegrim
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/apr/29/why-have-americas-black-farmers-disappeared
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ncmncm
Died. 1920 was a long time ago.

Their descendants, though...

How many white farmers were there in 1920, and what fraction of that number
are left? 1%? Proportionally, that would leave 10,000 black farmers. 200 per
state, averaged? Is that high, or low?

~~~
openasocket
Here's some statistics from 1920:
[http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/usda/AgCensusImages/1920/Far...](http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/usda/AgCensusImages/1920/Farm_Statistics_By_Color_and_Tenure.pdf)

Over 14% of farmers in 1920 were black, ~950,000 out of ~6,500,000. This year
that number is 45,000 out of 3,400,000, which is 1.3%.

So there's been a pretty massive demographic shift. And some of the behavior
outlined in this article is a pretty good explanation for why.

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BoiledCabbage
> He needs 45 bushels from each acre to make a profit. To avoid being docked –
> getting priced down for moisture or debris in the bushels – he will ask his
> wife, Kara Brewer Boyd, to enlist her white stepfather to sell the beans for
> him. When the other man takes Boyd’s beans, he’s not docked but
> complimented.

Sad that people still have to deal with this. He literally can't sell his own
product without being discriminated against. And this is the type of thing
that isn't usually listed under "racism" but is a extra cost he has to pay his
whole life.

~~~
vokep
Why would this not usually be listed under "racism"?

Seems pretty damn racist and completely fucked for this to still occur today.

~~~
BoiledCabbage
Agreed it is. But most black farmers probably don't have a white family member
to test out the same product and see that people pay more and compliment it
when they sell it.

Instead they just receive lower prices and complaints when they try to sell.
And if I were putting money, most of those prospective buyers would argue how
'fair' and equitable their evaluations are and how they are judging the
product and not the person.

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otabdeveloper2
> Where did they go?

On welfare.

