Black farmers are taking legal action against the Biden administration arguing the White House failed to deliver on its debt relief promise as thousands risk foreclosure on their land.
President of the National Black Farmers Association John Boyd Jr. joined "Fox & Friends First" Monday to discuss how the White House has betrayed farmers of color, saying "these are some of the hardest economic times in history" for farmers due to fuel costs and rising inflation.
"This administration has let down America's Black farmers and other farmers of color," Boyd Jr. told co-host Todd Piro. "Here we are with promised debt relief to the tune of 120%, and I've been trying to meet with President Biden about this."
"Many times on your show I made this request, and that request fell upon deaf ears after the president gave me his word last July that we would have a sit-down meeting, a real-time meeting to discuss why Black and other farmers of color had not received the actual 120% debt relief," he continued.
"The administration repealed it… and we see it as a broken contract between Black and other farmers of color and a broken promise on behalf of this president to not deliver for a body of people who certainly delivered for him."
John Boyd Jr. has long criticized the Biden administration for failing to invest in American agriculture, saying he has requested to meet with him on numerous occasions to discuss his vow to provide debt relief to farmers of color.
Most recently in the push for debt relief, the Inflation Reduction Act removed what would have been a "moratorium provision" to provide financial relief for certain farmers.
But John Boyd Jr., who has been farming for nearly four decades, said debt relief is a decades-old request that has yet to be honored.
"This administration has to put America's farmers first and in that definition has to be the Black farmer," Boyd Jr. said. "This is the oldest occupation in the history for Black people in the United States.
"… The president can resolve this right now if he's willing to come to the table and talk about this broken promise and how he's going to make it right," he continued.
