Sixth Circuit Weighs Black Farmers’ Challenge to USDA Program

A federal appeals court on Thursday questioned whether a group of Black farmers challenging a $2.2 billion financial assistance program run by the US Department of Agriculture has standing to pursue their claims.

The Black Farmers and Agriculturalists Association Inc. and its members asked the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit to reverse dismissal of their suit alleging the USDA’s Discrimination Financial Assistance Program “perpetuates historic racial discrimination” because it excludes claims from deceased farmers and landowners who were subjected to discrimination by the agency.

The district court concluded that the farmers’ challenges to the exclusions fail because ...