The Harris-Walz campaign reportedly drew more than 100 black farmers and supporters in Byromville, Georgia on Sunday as it targets rural voters in the Peach State in a bid to repeat the party’s 2020 victory.
Huffington Post deputy editor Philip Lewis reported the Harris-Walz occurred at Jibb’s Vineyard, which he described as a black-owned vineyard, and said it focused “on rural Black farmers.”
A Harris campaign staffer posted a video from the event to the social media platform X, where she wrote, “100+ Black farmers, community members and local leaders from across Georgia showing up and showing out for [Harris] and [Walz]!”
A press release from the Harris-Walz campaign promised Vice President Kamala Harris will “lower costs for hardworking Georgians and help people across the peach state and the country get ahead — including farmers hit especially hard by Hurricane Helene,” if elected in November, according to WALB News 10.
100+ Black farmers, community members and local leaders from across Georgia showing up and showing out for @KamalaHarris and @Tim_Walz! 🍑🍑🍑 https://t.co/GxyVu8Ty0A pic.twitter.com/BEE25JQoUS
— Adelaide Bullock (@abullock802) October 6, 2024
The Harris-Walz event occurred less than one year after a judge appointed by former President Donald Trump blocked the Biden-Harris administration plan to disperse U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) emergency aid to farmers based on race.
That plan was accomplished by the Biden-Harris administration through the American Rescue Plan Act, the spending package President Joe Biden promoted to address the remaining effects of the pandemic at the start of his administration.
It allowed loaned made to farmers through the USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) to be have their loans forgiven if they were considered “socially disadvantaged” farmers, which the Biden-Harris administration specifically limited to, “Black/African American, American Indian or Alaskan native, Hispanic or Latino, or Asian American or Pacific Islander.”
The plan prompted private legal action from farmers, backed by the State of Texas.
Ultimately, in June 2024 The Washington Post reported that federal District Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk, an appointee of former President Donald Trump, prevented the federal government from providing relief to farmers based on the racial categories outlined in in the American Rescue Plan.
An attorney representing the plaintiffs celebrated the decision to The Post as “a win for equality across the country,” and stated, “America’s farmers have been mistreated by this Administration for years now with one discriminatory scheme after another.”
Trump holds a slight lead over Harris with one month until Election Day, according to the RealClearPolling average of data, which shows the former president ahead by 1.5 percent.
While most polls tracked by the aggregate are within the margin of error, a Quinnipiac University poll released last week suggested Trump may be expanding his lead.
It found Trump leading Harris with 50 percent of the vote, and winning or tied with the Democrat on every election issue except for abortion. It also showed more viewers now hold a favorable view of Trump than Harris.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
