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www.thelandonline.com — “Where Farm and Family Meet”
THE LAND — JUNE 12/JUNE 19, 2020
Growing up lacking black in the red, white and blue The first African American I really Still, he was indeed privileged and race — like the U.S. Department of Agriculture itself — interacted with was not an American but was at the heart of that privilege. He was that had to be court-ordered to stop systematic diswas, in fact, an African. He was a educated at a Land Grant university, was crimination against minority farmers and ranchers. Nigerian graduate student who served as never unemployed, always had a freezer That is my and my father’s shameful legacy; we a teaching assistant to the “discussion filled with enough food to last months, he learned early in our privileged, white lives to look session” of a political science class I took and his family never suffered any major away because that would make racism go away. And at the Big U in 1973. illness or calamity, and always had it did, for us. health insurance if any did strike, and That I was nearly 20 years old before For its victims, however, racism remained and conever having a conversation with any per- FARM & FOOD FILE his biggest debt ever was to the local tinues to remain a daily outrage … and, far too Ford dealer. son of color other than farm-tanned often, a life-threatening injustice. By Alan Guebert Lutherans says more about my upbringI am privileged, too, and my privilege No single person can fix or forgive this age-old sin. ing in 1960s rural southern Illinois can be most certainly described as Each of us, however, can use our privilege to inform than (I hope) me. white. I’ve spent my working life comourselves, and to speak up as well as vote against it, fortably ensconced in an industry — Back then, many rural towns in its hatred, and its inequality. agriculture — known for its deeply insular whitesouthern Illinois were “sundown” communities — ness. We owe that much — that little, really — to every meaning it was illegal for anyone of color to spend American brother and sister regardless of race and the night in town. The deeply racist law didn’t need Except, of course, for the estimated 70 percent of creed. to be enforced; everyone knew it. Like many “tradiall food produced by American agriculture which is tions” of that age, though, it was buried in the culplanted, weeded, sprayed, harvested, milked, fed, The Farm and Food File is published weekly tural graveyard that became the 1960s. butchered, packaged, carried and stocked by the through the United States and Canada. Past colbrown and black backs and hands of its largest, umns, events and contact information are posted at The only time my father ever commented on race www.farmandfoodfile.com. v was the April 1968 evening Martin Luther King, Jr. hardest-working labor force. was murdered in Memphis. His remark that night, And then there are the many U.S. ag institutions too vile to repeat here, displayed a bigotry I had never heard from him before and, equally striking for me, I never heard from him again. Send your letters to: Editor, The Land, P.O. Box 3169, Mankato, MN 56002 I do suspect, however, he never forgot what he had e-mail: editor@thelandonline.com said that night because 40 years later, in 2008, he All letters must be signed and accompanied by a phone number (not for publication) to verify authenticity. smiled when telling me that he had voted for Barack Obama for president. It was the only time he ever told me who he had voted for. Like most rural white Americans then and now, Dad spent most of his life in a sunshine-filled bubble of church, farm groups, and family friends who By KRISTIN KVENO she felt to be raising crops and did not include one person who didn’t look like him. The Land Staff Writer animals with the family she Today, some call that a life of “white privilege.” held so dear. The love she felt for This spring I had the opportuHe’d have scoffed at that assessment and likely her family, the farm and her nity to head out to a farm near would have asked exactly what part of getting up at faith were evident in just our St. George, Minn. and interview 5 a.m. nearly every day for 40 years to milk 100 short time together that spring the Dummer family about their Holsteins was privileged. afternoon. maple syrup business. Matt and his wife, Nicki were so welcomNicki passed away on June 6 ing and gave me a tour as well in a tragic accident. Her legacy as explained the maple syrup will continue in her precious making process. Right away, you children that seemed to be filled could sense the immense pride with that same love for family, South Central College is seeking Full-Time Farm that Matt and Nicki had in confaith and farming that she exuBusiness Management Faculty based in the Fairfax tinuing the family tradition of berated with so much joy. Our region. The primary instructional delivery method producing maple syrup each thoughts and prayers go out to FBM instructors utilize individualized instruction at spring. Their kids, Zach, (age the Dummer family and their the student’s business. Instructors meet with the five), Luke (age three) and Leah community. students on a regular basis to evaluate the business (one and a half years old) loved and develop individual educational plans. FBM A GoFundMe page has been helping with the maple syrup instructors are responsible for selling credit courses set up for the family. It can be making and were eager to show to existing and new customers. Through increased accessed at https://www.gofundme how it’s done. Photo by Kristin Kveno me.com/f/matt-amp-nicki-dumsales, the instructor has increased earning potential above the guaranteed base salary. I had the chance to walk with The most recent issue of The Land mer-family?fbclid=IwAR0f8Koy Nicki out to check on the tapped featured the Dummer family’s maple h V p O O 5 p L 1 Y r f Z M T X C K D Please apply at maple trees. It was during that syrup operation. On June 6, Nicki 29shvIz0jo74tk1Yxvb-qt4y2sThttp://www.southcentral.edu/HR time she told me how blessed Dummer (far right) was tragically bKMmw v killed in a motorcycle accident. by June 21, 2020.
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