I fully support this legislation as a necessary and critical step in creating a black yeomanry to counteract the negative effects of the ghettos. We had land grants for decades, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with this and the claim it’s somehow linked to land seizures isn’t remotely supported.
It won't do anything but make failed farms and doesn't look to solve the problems facing present famrers. With new farmers soon facing the same problems without the ingrained culture and local support network built up over generations.
Maybe if you give land to existing farmers it could help but then you need land next previous farms which is hard to come by. Any plan to expand existing farms requires luck since there are not millions of acres of empty land to hand out is just a bad plan.
Then you get into the size problems. The average size of a farm in Amercia is more then double 160 maximum that this would provide coming in at 444 acres. Most smaller farmers are forming companies like Moink and coops to help compete because economy of scale is a real killer for idealized family farm that media and city folk think about.
You can tell that this bill is supported by senators and representatives from states like NJ and Massachusetts instead of massive farming states like Nebraska or even Minnesota. The farming culture of New Jersey is made up of small hobby farms with an attached winery that sell high end goods to rich people from New York and Philadelphia. Most of these are more corporation then the standard family owned farm too.
It is also set in the mindset of 100 years ago. Being a farmer does not set up the generational wealth that it did when Amercia tamed the West. The Homestead act gave away free land and created revenue for the government with land to spare for the heirs to each get their own farm. This is going to be a massive expenditure for little gains. The trick now is to form a culture that values college education that looks at degrees with earning potential.
Then you have the problem finding a heir to take over the farm. Many families have more then one kid and most of the time none of them want to take over. This causes a bit of a fire sale as neighboring farms buy it up. Even if you have a willing heir unless the parents want to cut the other out of the will the liquid funds will disappear or the farm will devolve into small useless parcels of land that are only good for being sold off.
A different popular option is to rent out the land to farmers with a rent to own option. That is how a lot of the Hmong families are getting farms. They also formed a coop to help fund land purchases and arrange for purchase orders.
The other question I have is if there is a bunch of black peopl in cities that want to be farmers. Because farming is not a lifestyle for everyone.
Farming is not a job for everyone. It is very boom and bust. Even with ranch and farm insurance a bad season can put you in the red for years.
Not to mention that while farmers are "Millionaires" it is mainly in land. They don't live the high life of the rich 20 something that T.V. loves to show. While you can make a good salary it takes long hours and lots of hard physical labor. You have to be book keeper, mechanic, carpenter, meteorologist and about a dozen other things. You also have to live outside of a city. This means they can no longer hit the clubs, see the latest play, that new restuarant is 40 minutes away.
Just like the military being a farmer is a lifestyle. Not many people will enjoy it or even want to try it. Most likely you see the same land going for sale in 5 years to a corporate farm. I have not seen the willingness of poorer black city folk wanting to move to the country and run a farm Green Acres or Bless This Mess stlye. Unlike what I have seen with the local Hispanic or Hmong communities that have a tradition of farming and willingness to continue it.
The other problem with this bill is that I am personal against race based bills like this. I find that they tend to favor one minority over the other and complete for that poor white also exist and nothing but create a culture of low expectations and resentment.
While the posters comparing this to South Africa are strawmanning I don't see much good coming from this. Even with the grants to traditional black colleges to expand this agriculture related programs. Big schools like University of Minnesota or NDSU both have trouble filling all their spots and have great programs. Overall this feels like a bill that is based of pop history of Amercia westward journey.