Secretary Dan Glickman

Five years ago, when I became Secretary of Agriculture, I discovered that USDA was still struggling--as much of our society still is--to make racial equality an institutionalized and unshakeable principle, in every action, decision, and program.

I immediately made it a top priority to make USDA a place where employees, customers, and constituents are all treated with the fairness and dignity they deserve. It has been my goal to make USDA a civil rights leader in the federal government.

One of our most important steps in that direction was the settlement we reached last year in a class-action suit brought by a group of African-American farmers alleging discrimination by USDA. The settlement calls for debt forgiveness and payments to individual plaintiffs who can prove discrimination, even if it occurred as long ago as 1981. As of June 8, payments totaling over $240 million have been made to 4,813 farmers.

But our civil rights agenda includes more than making amends for past injustice. In 1996, I appointed a committee of USDA employees to examine the state of civil rights throughout the Department and report back to me with suggested actions. After three months of exhaustive fact-finding, they delivered 92 recommendations covering everything from ways to save minority-owned farms to USDA hiring practices to disciplinary action for civil rights violators.

As we have acted on those recommendations, change has come. USDA has increased the number of new loans to African-American farmers by more than two-thirds. We have strengthened our relationships with Historically Black Colleges and Universities and other minority-serving institutions. Racial minorities are now better represented both in the USDA workforce and on our Farm Service Agency’s County Committees. And our food safety arm has stepped up its outreach efforts, ensuring that its educational materials are disseminated in minority communities.

Internally, almost all USDA employees have now completed some civil rights training, learning about the particular sensitivities involved in working with historically underserved communities. Many supervisors and managers have received additional training, to help them manage the diversity on their staffs. And our agency heads are now evaluated as much on their civil rights performance as any other aspect of their job.

We have introduced accountability to those who do not follow civil rights guidelines. Over the last two years, we have issued 94 disciplinary actions, ranging from letters of reprimand to 14 dismissals.

Overhauling an institutional culture is not an overnight job. It will take a sustained commitment and relentless vigilance over an extended period of time. We have yet to reach the mountaintop, but we have begun the climb.