Save the Land

               

PRESS RELEASE   Contact: Gary R. Grant at (252) 826-2800   Save the Land: Black Farmers Benefit & Rally A Success Contact: Gary R. Grant, President (252) 826-2800   Tillery, NC -  Black Farmers Benefit & Rally A Success   On October 22-23, 2010 the Black Farmers & Agriculturalists Association (BFAA) commemorated its first Save the Land: Black Farmer Benefit and Rally. The first of this two-day event took place Friday evening, October 22, 2010 at the Tillery Community Center. Starting at four o'clock, attendees were treated to a tour of the Remembering Tillery History House by members of Concerned Citizens of Tillery (CCT). The History House journals and chronicles the Tillery Resettlement using photographs, artifacts, spirituals and video. Following the tour, friends and community residents came together to watch the two documentary films, Alaska Far Away: The Matanuska Valley and We Shall Not be Moved: The Story of the Tillery Resettlement. Both films record the trials and successes of homesteaders who joined New Deal Resettlements in regions of Alaska and North Carolina.   These are the only two such documentaries on the Resettlement Farm Era.  At the conclusion of the story on the Tillery Resettlement, viewers, lifted and engulfed in the resilience of the community, joined one another in singing "We Shall Not Be Moved".   Dr. Spencer Wood, Assistant Professor of Sociology at Kansas State University and secretary to the BFAA board  presented the audience with an introduction to the history of the New Deal Resettlement Eras of the 1930s and 1940s.   This inaugural occasion was followed up by a joyous gathering Saturday morning at Unit #46 of Tillery Resettlement Farms, part of the Moore-Grant Family Homelands. This daylong affair was well attended as the overflow of cars from the Moore Grant Memorial Gardens extended well along Roanoke Drive. Supporters from both coasts and in between: Georgia, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Florida, Kansas, Oklahoma, New York, Washington, D.C., and California came to Tillery to show their patronage and to reinforce the struggle for survival of Black farmers and landowners.   The talent of this event's lineup was undeniable.The day was christened with the melodious sounds of The Mighty Men of Valor, a gospel choir from Scotland Neck. Gospel recording artists Minister Malachi, AhNu and Crystal Clear, the niece of BFAA President, Gary R. Grant, appealed to the youth in the audience with Christian raps and songs of praise. Representing the struggle for justice in harmony, the R&B/Funk group, the Fruit of Labor, got the crowd on its  feet with deep grooves and heavy lyrics that not only made us dance, but made us think. One of the musical highlights of the day was the song styling of Ermitt ' Mr. Blues' Williams from St. John's Island, SC, but whose roots are in the Tillery area. Steve Wing a noted keyboardist and member of the North Carolina Environmental Justice Network and Ed Whitfield of the Fund for Democratic Communities joined Mr. Blues in providing the audience with a lengthy jam session on the "front porch" which had been converted into the performing stage of the day. Lastly, national and international traveling artists Siobhan Quinn and Michael Bowers from Washington, D.C. serenaded the audience with rhythm and blues and perfect harmonies.   Why a Call for a Benefit for and History of Black Farmers  In all the years of struggle to save Black owned land and farmers, there has not been a real Revolving Loan Fund for Black farmers since the crushing of the Land Assistance Fund in the 1970's fielded by the Federation of Southern Cooperatives, and the Land Loss Fund established by the Concerned Citizens of Tillery in the 1980's. This event will rejuvenate the Land Loss Fund as the CCT/BFAA Land Loss Fund, a national fund for assistance. Such a fund will be there for the hard and trying times to assist with:   Retention: Help farmers get crops in fields on time, weather financial stress, and avoid tax delinquency. Acquisition: Purchase land that is threatened until the family can repurchase, provide small loans to assist new farmers who want to enter agriculture, and link sellers and buyers. Advocate: Work with other groups to advocate for Black farmers and agricultural policies that benefit family farms and nutritional food. Educate: Continue education on the significance of Black land and agriculture for the well being of all.   And as you well know, there are many other ways to volunteer to assist with this event. Just contact the BFAA office at bfaausnow@aol.com or tillery@aol.com. Visit the BFAA web site, www.bfaa-us.org, for more information.  Contributions are still being accepted by mail and PayPal at the web site. © 2010 BFAA         ©2010      BFAA | P.O. Box 61, Tillery, NC 27887

   

An Older Post; Obama Doesn't Respond Until After Fourth Invitation

February 3, 2008

Via Fax: (202) 228-4260 fax

The Honorable Barack Obama
713 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510


Dear Senator Obama:

When I wrote to you initially (12/2/07) requesting you to speak at the 10th National Black Land Loss Summit, it was as your status as A Senator form Illinois who had supported Black farmers across the country by offering up an amendment to the 2007 Farm Bill supporting late claimers in the historic Pigford Class Action. My second letter (2nd letter - 12/31/07) was of the same nature. My third and fourth letters (3rd letter 1/22/08) began to address the possibility of support for your campaign and citizens from across the country making the same request with financial support if they so desired.

Disappointed I am, and many others, that you will not be able to join us at the 10th National Black Land Loss Summit. I do want you to know that I understand and know that you have a very busy schedule, and we probably would not have been notified if you could come until a close date to the time of the Summit. And, I am appreciative that your Washington office did finally respond to someone and the message reached me that neither you, nor anyone from your campaign, would be able to be with us on February 16, 2008 here in rural northeaster North Carolina in the 1st Congressional District represented by the Honorable G.K. Butterfield.

However, in so stating my regrets and disenchantment, let it be known that I am doing so mildly because I am more than disappointed that this organization sent you four (4) letters of request by fax and mail, and had many citizens from around the country write to you and your campaign regarding your possible visit, but we never heard anything from you or your campaign. This is very unsettling since your campaign is based on change and calling for a “New Day” in the country, one that is inclusive and, as your wife stated in a speech I heard recently on TV, “…giving a little respect and dignity” for all of us.

I recently wrote to President George W. Bush regarding an issue of a Black farm family. Yes, I did expect a reply from him even though I am sure he checked and found that I am a life long registered voting Democrat and my name did not appear on his contributors list, no matter how small the contribution. And no, I did not get a response signed by President Bush, but I did get a response from the White House. It was disappointing as well, but at least they acknowledged that the issue and I exist. Regrettably, I cannot say the same here.


Black land loss is not a North Carolina issue, and evidently you are aware of this or you would not have introduced the amendment to the 2007 Farm Bill to support the late Pigford Claimants. As I stated in one of the four letters I sent you, “people come from as many as twenty (20) states to attend the Black Land Loss Summit.” Your support for the Pigford Class late claims is admirable and says you are concerned about how poor and working people are making it in this country, and that if they have been mistreated, they should have their day in court. But alas, not to acknowledge requests is deplorable.

Also, to my knowledge, the last presidential candidate who came through northeastern North Carolina with a message of “hope” was not disappointed in the reception that he found both in numbers and dollars. We could, and still can, have people to stand by you in the same manner.

I am not sure if I will receive a response to this letter or if it will be treated like the other four sent. However, I am notifying you that I am sending this letter to Congressman Butterfield and thanking him for his rapid follow through on a request of one of his constituents. A copy will be placed on the BFAA website, and a copy will be filed in the archives of the Remembering Tillery History Project for those who study the Black farmers issue and the presidential races of this era so they will have access to and know of this great disappointment.

Wishing you all the best,


Gary R. Grant
President, BFAA

We Shall Not Be Moved Documentary Trailer Available

To learn about the importance of land for rural communities, watch our new video about the Tillery Community. The entire trailer is now available for viewing down below. To order a copy please click here.