The Importance of Land (cont'd from The Seed)

In the latest article of The Seed I reported about the Pigford settlement that has yet to be paid to Black Farmers. In a recent interview with Tavis Smiley, John Boyd gives the history of the Pigford settlement and his plans for moving ahead. To understand why Boyd is so dedicated we need to understand why land is so important. It seems that we as Black people don’t understand the importance of owning land. There are over 40 million Black people in America yet only 68,000 of us own land. In his profound article “The 40-acre Crisis” Mr. William Foster lays out how land ownership is directly related to wealth, politics, school curriculum, crime and unemployment rates. Looking at our history, Black Wall Street in Tulsa, OK and Sweet Auburn in Atlanta, GA show us the potential for economic, social, and political growth when we own land.

Black Wall Street