Denver, Colorado – June 30, 2021 — Colorado farmer Sara Rogers didn’t believe it when she first heard reports that the Biden Administration was purposely excluding non-minorities like her from a post-COVID-19 farm sector relief plan. That can’t be right, thought Rogers: it goes against everything America is supposed to stand for. The economic damage done by COVID-19 didn’t discriminate – it hit farmers and ranchers of all creeds and colors hard. Distributing aid based on skin color wasn’t just unfair, she thought. It seemed like the blatant sort of racial discrimination the government is supposed to fight, not perpetrate.
When the seemingly far-fetched rumors turned out to be true, the dismay Rogers initially felt became a steely resolve to do something about it, which led to this week’s filing by Mountain States Legal Foundation of a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Biden’s actions on equal protection grounds.
What Rogers and MSLF seek is for all qualifying white farmers and ranchers to also receive loan forgiveness under American Recovery Plan Act, or to have the racially discriminatory program struck down in its entirety. Two recent court rulings have put the plan on hold until the issue can be adjudicated, or until the Biden Administration recognizes its terrible mistake and reverses course, which doesn’t seem likely based on official statements and actions suggesting it is doubling down.
“By choosing who gets loan forgiveness solely on the basis of race, the government is engaging in the very discrimination that it purports to be fighting against,” said Corey Bartkus, MSLF’s lead attorney on the case. “This blatant discrimination is not only illegal and unconstitutional, it further stokes racial tensions at a time in which unity is needed most in this country.”
Bartkus says the young mother deserves accolades for stepping up on a potentially contentious issue while also raising a family and keeping the farm afloat. “MSLF is fighting to ensure that all Americans, regardless of race, are viewed equally in the eyes of the government,” Bartkus said. “But we can’t combat these injustices unless courageous Americans like Sara are willing to take a principled stand for what’s right and fair and constitutional.”
Follow this link to see our case page
Follow this link to read the filing.