By Brother Shelton Muhammad and Household
Nationwide — In 2009, we had been requested by a Black farmer and his spouse if we might contemplate buying their farm in Southampton County, Virginia, traditionally often known as the place the place Nat Turner was born, fought, and died to free our individuals from our former slave masters. At the moment, I used to be working as an assistant principal and pursuing my doctorate in Academic Management at Fayetteville State College, and my spouse was a nurse who additionally labored in North Carolina.
Though we had achieved some gardening previously, we by no means had any plans to purchase a farm. The household that owned the farm wished it to remain within the palms of Black individuals, because it had been for a lot of generations. The truth that the farm had an present industrial contracted poultry operation advised that we might have a income to take care of, maintain, and advance the farm and doubtlessly construct generational wealth.
In 2010, we had been blessed to buy the farm, and instantly, till this current time, we now have been underneath assault. We initially believed that it was simply a few weak, envious southern rednecks who hated any progress being made by Black individuals who labored to sabotage our operation, however now we all know of the larger conspiracy and the key actors who labored for hundreds of years to destroy all Black farmers and Black-owned farms.
The aim of this writing is to reveal the key gamers on this battle over our farm, the motive behind the enemy, and the plan of the enemy because it has been revealed, to take our farm. Current our response to the enemy’s plan, however most significantly, we want to show our religion and belief in God, who’s current and who has promised us victory over all of our enemies.
The key gamers on this battle representing the Authorities of america are members of the Division of Agriculture (USDA), Farm Service Company FSA, Southampton County Officers, and their legal professionals, and scared-to-death negroes who work for these companies towards Black farmers.
The true motive of the enemy, who is aware of the scriptures, is to not let the Black man set up farming industries impartial of our former slave-masters and their kids. They’re absolutely conscious of this promised land, as talked about by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., from God to us, the Black man and lady of America, that we are going to inherit and develop into the masters right here the place we had been as soon as slaves. Due to this fact, the enemy can’t enable us to have the fundamental requirement for freedom, “land”, and develop into productive and an impartial individuals. Since we had been emancipated, the enemy has engaged in “Covert Financial Warfare” towards Black farmers, ensuing within the lack of Black farmers and Black-owned farmland.
The plan of the enemy towards us right here, because it has been revealed, was to destroy us financially, crippling our potential to take care of and maintain our day-to-day farming operation, and our potential to fulfill the wants of our fundamental residing bills, and to hide and instantly disqualify us for an annual industrial contracted poultry operation mortgage that’s important for industrial farming operations to achieve success.
Destroying us financially would trigger us monetary hardships and misery, leading to what they hoped could be a diminishing want for the farm, lack of hope in advancing the farm, after which both promoting or shedding the farm on account of lack of income to pay the mortgage or actual property taxes. However most significantly, additionally they wished to kill any want in my household, particularly my sons, for farming and for them to pursue different endeavors.
The American farming business was devastated by sure historic occasions a few of which embrace: the Civil Warfare which passed off from 1861-1865 between the North and the South, the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation to free our ancestors from slavery, the destruction of the cotton crops by the infestation of boll weevil between 1892-1925, the Nice Migration from 1910-1970 by our ancestors to flee sharecropping within the south to the north, the devastation of the mud bowel between 1930-1940, and the nice melancholy from 1929-1939 or 1941.
Due to these damaging historic occasions, America wanted a strategy to preserve and assist the American farming business. In 1937, as a part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal, the Farm Safety Administration was established to supply much-needed entry to credit score for the American farming business. It offered low-interest loans to farmers who couldn’t get hold of credit score elsewhere, particularly to assist them meet every day operational bills and stay on their land in the course of the Nice Despair.
The American farming business in the present day depends closely on annual operational loans to handle day-to-day bills important for sustaining and rising agricultural operations. These loans are particularly designed to cowl routine prices comparable to seed, fertilizer, feed, gasoline, crop safety, and labor crucial for planting, rising, and harvesting crops or elevating livestock. These working loans bridge the monetary hole between seasonal bills and earnings generated from harvests or gross sales, permitting farmers to take care of money stream all year long. The loans are sometimes repaid after the sale of the crop or livestock, aligning compensation with the farm’s income cycle. The mortgage construction minimizes curiosity expenses to solely the funds used and the time they’re borrowed, making it a cheap resolution in comparison with long-term financing.
A lot of the industrial farmers in Southampton County, Virginia, rely closely on these annual farming operational loans as a result of nature of business farming, when there are months from planting to reap earlier than a farmer can promote his crops for income to take care of his farming operation, pay staff, buy farming tools, and preserve their important residing bills. It’s just about not possible to interact in industrial farming with out the important crucial assist to industrial farmers provided in the present day by america Division of Agriculture (USDA) by the Farm Service Company (FSA).
The USDA Farm Service Company is meant to supply these similar varieties of annual farm working loans to assist industrial contracted poultry farmers, together with these managing hen homes. These loans are to cowl important manufacturing prices which are incurred earlier than income is generated from the sale of completed birds. These loans are crucial for managing the money stream hole that arises as a result of delayed income stream in contract broiler manufacturing, the place earnings is acquired solely after a flock is accomplished and bought, sometimes after a 60-day rising interval. Throughout this time, farmers should pay for utilities, labor, feed, and different operational bills, which might quantity to excessive prices. Farm Working Loans, administered by the USDA’s Farm Service Company (FSA), are particularly designed to assist farmers cowl these bills.
This important assist, the annual industrial contracted poultry operation mortgage, was willfully and deliberately hid and by no means offered to us for 16 years as we struggled mightily to function our industrial contracted poultry farming operation. Our enemies, who work within the Southampton County USDA Farm Service Company mortgage division, used it towards us as a main instrument on this “covert financial battle” to destroy us financially. The enemy knew that to cripple us financially, concurrently destroying our poultry homes, would instantly disqualify us for the important annual industrial contracted poultry operational mortgage, even when we had recognized about them and utilized. They deliberate, nevertheless, to supply us help to repair the homes and repair our mortgage debt, which might additionally disqualify us for the annual industrial contracted poultry operational mortgage. This plan had been in place unexpectedly for 16 years, from 2010 to 2026.
By denying us the annual industrial contracted poultry operational mortgage, they knew it might have a direct influence on our managing the day-to-day farming operation and our farm particularly, paying employees, utility payments, electrical payments, mortgage, actual property taxes, farm repairs, dwelling repairs, and tools repairs. It has hindered our potential to maintain and preserve a constant, productive farming operation, advance our farm, diminish our bodily and psychological power, and have an effect on our non secular well-being.
However by God’s permission, just lately, a white industrial farmer mentioned with me how they (white industrial farmers in Southampton County, Virginia) preserve and maintain their farms utilizing annual industrial farm operation loans. Now the key was revealed, what was hidden at the hours of darkness has now been delivered to the sunshine.
Due to this fact, we’d like your assist to assist us to concurrently qualify for this important farming annual operation mortgage in addition to set up an agribusiness mannequin in Southampton County, Virginia, which we name “The Farm Retailer Market,” which can assist Black farmers preserve and maintain their farms, create jobs for our individuals, and supply higher high quality meals to our communities.
We imagine we’re engaged in a closing battle for Muhammad Household Farm with the forces which have traditionally destroyed Black farmers and their farms. In 1831, the Nat Turner revolt right here in Southampton County, Virginia, despatched shockwaves all through America, and so will this victory ship shockwaves all through America, because it unites Black farmers with our communities and vice versa.
Please assist this closing battle right here in Southampton County, Virginia, and assist Black farmers by donating no matter you possibly can to this combat.
Donations may be made utilizing:
Money App: $sheltonmuhammadfarmZelle: 757-556-2381
Or by sending a verify or cash order made payable to:Muhammad Household Farm33181 The Corridor RoadBranchville, VA 23828
There may be additionally a GoFundMe web page on the hyperlink under:https://gofund.me/6ef20c5c
For added data or questions, ship an e-mail to muhammadfamilyfarm@gmail.com
