Blacks lost $ 326 billion on American land in the 20th century

An unprecedented study of the impact of racism analyzed the profiles of North American agricultural landowners from 1922 to 1997.

On Sunday (May 1, 2022), black farmers in the United States lost about $ 326 billion in arable land in the 20th century, according to a study published in the Sunday (May 1, 2022) annual print magazine. Documents and proceduresGives American Economic Association.

The publication of author Dania Francis, a researcher at the University of Massachusetts-Boston, is unprecedented in the study of the financial impact of racism on agricultural property in the United States.

“Wealth and land in this country are a way to increase opportunities for your family. […]. It speaks to the wealth gap between generations that was partially opened up due to this kind of land loss.“Francis wrote.

The study took into account the magnitude of the decline in land area cultivated by black farmers in 17 states between 1922 and 1997. Inflation adjustment is estimated to have caused the equivalent of $ 326 billion in land grabbing, which is considered conservative by the study’s authors.

Findings show that land loss is exacerbated by discriminatory borrowing practices Usta (US Department of Agriculture) and forced sale of property.

According to the survey ReutersIn 1910 African-American farmers owned more than 16 million acres of land. In the last 2017 Agricultural Census, that number dropped to 4.7 million acres, or 0.5% of the total farmland in the United States.