USDA
Vilsack says he offered to resign over Sherrod scandal
The Hill – USDA chief Tom Vilsack said he offered to resign from his post last month at the height of the controversy over comments made by rural development official Shirley Sherrod. A video clip of Sherrod saying she had denied full assistance to a white farmer because of his race went viral in mid-July, [...]
Sherrod rejects return to Agriculture
The Agriculture Department official ousted during a racial firestorm last month has declined to accept an invitation to return to fulltime work at the agency. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack says Shirley Sherrod did agree to work with agency in a consulting capacity to help it improve its civil rights performance. She said “I just don’t [...]
Ga. Senate candidate talks about race at USDA
A Democratic U.S. Senate candidate from Georgia says he used to be suspicious of white people because he never spoke to one his age until his all-black high school consolidated with an all-white one when he was 18. The 57-year-old Michael Thurmond said those suspicions dissipated as he interacted with whites at his Athens, Ga., [...]
Despite Sherrod spotlight, black farmers denied
Black farmers, due $1.2 billion for a legacy of discrimination by the Agriculture Department, suffered a new and disheartening setback this week, despite the national spotlight provided by the quickly disavowed firing of a black department worker. The Senate refused again to pay the bill. Opponents say it’s a question of where the money would [...]
