CALUMET COUNTY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – A Calumet County farmer is one of five midwestern farmers suing the federal government.
The group is alleging they can’t participate in a COVID-19 loan forgiveness program, because of the color of their skin. White farmers aren’t eligible, amounting to a violation of the plaintiffs’ constitutional rights, the lawsuit contends.
“Were plaintiffs eligible for the loan forgiveness benefit, they would have the opportunity to make additional investments in their property, expand their farms, purchase equipment and supplies, and otherwise support their families and local communities. Because plaintiffs are ineligible to even apply for the program solely due to their race, they have been denied the equal protection of the law and therefore suffered harm.”
“It was just out and out racist, and I really don’t think that there should be racism allowed in the federal government at any level!” Adam Faust, owner of Faust Farms in Chilton said.
Faust is a white farmer. That is the sole reason he tells FOX he doesn’t qualify for the Biden administration’s COVID-19 stimulus plan.
“If somebody’s green, I think they should be allowed to participate, based on their actual qualifications for the program, and not just picking an arbitrary thing like race.”
According to the lawsuit, filed in federal court in Green Bay Thursday, the American Rescue Plan provides $4 billion to forgive loans for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers. But “socially disadvantaged,” the lawsuit alleges, are only those who are Black, American Indian, Hispanic, Alaskan native, Asian American or Pacific Islander, not white.
“I don’t see where they’re gonna be impacted any different than anybody else,” Faust said. “I’ve never seen any government program based solely on that. I mean, if it would’ve been against any other race, everybody would’ve been onboard and would’ve been complaining immediately!”
Attorneys for the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty filed the suit on behalf of the white farmers.
“That’s literally what the law says,” WILL deputy counsel Daniel Lennington explained. “If you’re not white, you get the benefit. If you’re white, you do not get the benefit.”
The group of plaintiffs includes farmers from Wisconsin, Minnesota, South Dakota and Ohio.
Farmers say, the language in the bill, alone, shows that discrimination can exist against white people, as well.
FOX 11 reached out to the U.S. Department of Justice. We did not directly hear back from them.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture did issue a statement, however. It says it’s reviewing the lawsuit with the DOJ, but that it plans to continue to offer loan forgiveness to “socially disadvantaged” farmers.
And while the relief would’ve no doubt helped, that’s not why the farmers are taking action.
“Our clients are not asking for their loans to be forgiven,” Lennington said. “Our clients are asking for the government to abide by the principal of equality.”
“Just equality!” said Faust.
Attorneys for the farmers say, the U.S. government now has a chance to respond somehow in court. In the meantime, they say they may need to ask the judge to temporarily put the loan program on hold, while the courts decide whether it’s even legal.
