New lawsuit alleges USDA discriminates against minority farmers through unfair loan practices

USDA discrimination class action overview: 

• Who: Plaintiffs Wenceslaus Provost Jr. and Angela Provost filed a class action lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Secretary of Agriculture Thomas Vilsack in his official capacity. 
• Why: The lawsuit accuses the USDA of discriminating against Black and other minority farmers by directing significantly more funding and opportunities to white farmers.
• Where: The USDA Black farmers class action lawsuit was filed in federal court in the District of Columbia.

A new class action lawsuit accuses the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) of discrimination against Black farmers in loans and financial opportunities.

The alleged USDA discrimination is long-standing, and the department has admitted to discriminatory practices that have cost Black farmers hundreds of billions of dollars in funding and opportunities that went to white farmers instead, the lawsuit says.

“This well-documented pattern and practice of discrimination is largely accomplished through a decentralized structure in which the power of the Secretary of Agriculture is handed over to (mostly white) officials in local offices who exercise their authority to benefit white farmers over Black and other minority farmers,” the USDA discrimination lawsuit says.

USDA discrimination allegedly leaves Black, other minority farmers with 25%-50% of what others get

Plaintiffs Wenceslaus Provost Jr. and Angela Provost say they were denied USDA loans for more than a decade, and they only received 25% to 50% of the funding white farmers received for the same number of acres, the USDA discrimination lawsuit says.

“When Mr. and Mrs. Provost did not have the funds to fertilize, weed, spray, water, plant and harvest at the right time because of the USDA’s untimely and inadequate loans, USDA officials said Mr. and Mrs. Provost were just ‘bad farmers,’” the lawsuit says.

The couple say they struggled to maintain their Louisiana sugarcane farm, pointing to the alleged USDA discrimination as a factor, according to the lawsuit.

In another USDA lawsuit, a group of minority farmers from Virginia argued in May 2023 that the U.S. government owes them millions of dollars in financial assistance they say was promised in the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). 

Have you attempted to get a USDA loan? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiffs are represented by Robin S. Crauthers, John B. Kenney, Ariel C. Green Anaba, Luis Li, Paul Watford, Mark Yohalem, Matthew Macdonald, Deno Himonas and Luke Liss of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich and Rosati. 

The USDA discrimination lawsuit is Provost, et al. v. Vilsack, et al., Case No. 1:24-cv-00920-TJK, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of Columbia.

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