From: LawrLCL@aol.com
Date: Wed, 27 Feb 2013 08:04:25 -0500
Subject: Fwd: three Filibuster for Justice articles
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From: LawrLCL@aol.com
To: lawrlcl@aol.com, lesa@snowcrest.net, robert@donnelly-house.net
Sent: 2/6/2012 8:47:36 P.M. Pacific Standard Time
Subj: Fwd: three Filibuster for Justice articlesSubj: three Filibuster for Justice articles
FOREST SERVICE UNDER FIRE
WASHINGTON, DC - A group of women from as far away as California came to "Filibuster for Justice," taking place outside the Department of Agriculture. The women joined the "USDA Coalition of Minority Employees & Minority Farmers" to demonstrate while awaiting a positive response from Obama-appointed USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack. For two years, Vilsack refused to meet with the group to discuss serious civil rights issues and concerns. The group asked that he meet with them to address the "racism, sexism, sexual assaults, bullying, racial epithet (hangman's nooses, use of the "N" word, the justification of a monkey doll), reprisals, initimidation, and hostile work environment."
In an Open Letter to President Obama, Lesa Donnelly, VP of the USDA Coalition of Minority Employees wrote, "...Secretary Vilsack seems to care little that women have been financially ruined, put in the hospital due to workplace violence, have been hospitalized for emotional breakdowns, are in fear for their lives, and have become suicidal." She asked the President for his help in order to stop the abuse, further stating, "The situation in Region 5 is so dire that we women were compelled to establish our own crisis intervention group. ...Last month I had a suicide call from a Hispanic woman. Today (September 29, 2011), I had a suicide call from a Native American woman. ...Last week, a Native American firefighter was going to quit her job because male firefighters wrote "whore" on the wall of her fire station. It was the last straw. This is the same woman I spoke of in my last letter who was sexually harassed, physically assaulted and forced to urinate in front of the men." The open letter continued stating that Tribal leaders throughout California were becoming increasingly concerned about treatment of our Native American women in the USDA Forest Service.U.S. Department of Agriculture
USDA is an old agency having been formed in 1862 and given Cabinet status in 1889, with about 100,000 employees and $132 billion to spend. The Department is responsible for developing and executing government policy on farming, agriculture and food. When President Lincoln established the independent agency, he called it the "people's department." Can you imagine what Lincoln would think about his department today, when over a decade later, women, Black farmers and other minorities, such as Native Americans, are seeking justice from abuse.
Based on its early beginning and history, it would be expected that, formed by and for the "Good Ole' Boys," they would continue to support their own and have less diversity than the smaller, much younger Federal departments and agencies. Based on USDA statistics (2007), women in USDA constitute about 44% of the permanent workforce, Blacks 11%, Hispanics 6%, Asian/Pacific Islanders 2.4%, Veterans 12%, and Disabled 7%. Employees aged 50 years and over account for 46% of the permanent workforce and 81% of the Senior Executive Service (SES). Women and minorities are represented at lower rates than their participation in the supervisory and SES ranks. For example, women represent 44% of the workforce, but only 28% are supervisors and 24% are SES; there are no Native Americans in the SES out of their 2.4% representation. The diversity of the workforce is of serious concern because it represents the nation's changes socially, racially, ethnically and economically. The previously all-white male bastions are losing men to retirement, with women, minorities and people with disabilities clamoring for their places. The leadership and who controls the decision-making then determines policies and practices. Issues confronting our leaders, managers and supervisors in today's climate need to be dealt with in a more progressive manner. Their issues, differences, existence, needs and concerns have to be addressed head on or there will be significant costs, personal and professional, associated with complainants, whistle blowers, and grievants. Stalling, threatening, retaliating against, and ignoring them will not make them go away.
FILIBUSTER SPEAKERSPresent and former U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) employees and minority farmers have planned a daily non-stop demonstration in front of the agency's Washington, DC office. The kick-off day for the "Filibuster for Justice" event is Tuesday, October 4, 2011. A host of speakers including John Boyd, President of the National Black Farmers Association, will address the lack of accountability at USDA.
"The primary purpose of this event is to continue to bring attention to the American public, the Obama White House, the Congress, and the leadership team of Secretary Tom Vilsack at the Department of Agriculture of the unceasing sexism, racism, reprisal, intimidation, sexual assaults, and other civil and human rights violations that must end for thousands of USDA employees and minority farmers," said Lawrence Lucas, President of the USDA Coalition of Minority Employees.
A GAO 2008 study disclosed that USDA "has been addressing allegations of discrimination for decades and receiving recommendations for improving its civil rights functions without achieving fundamental improvements" (p. 31). http://www.coalition4change.org/USDA%20CRO.pdf. According to some present and former USDA employees, Joe Leonard, Jr., USDA's Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, has contributed to the inefficiency of USDA's complaint processing. Leonard was sworn into the position of Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights in April 2009. http://www.ascr.usda.gov/about_cr_joe_leonard.html
Civil rights groups, including The Coalition For Change, Inc. (C4C), plan to attend the Filibuster for Justice at USDA, the agency many refer to as - The Last Plantation. C4C members will stand in solidarity with USDA Coalition of Minority Employees and Black farmers. "Undisputedly, internal discrimination within USDA continues to negatively impact our communities," said Tanya Ward Jordan, founder of the volunteer organization comprised of former and present employees who have been injured or ill-treated due to workplace discrimination and/or reprisal. http://www.coalition4change.org/index.htm
Several months ago, Mr. Philip Taylor, the President of C4C, wrote to USDA to learn what actions, if any, the agency planned to take against public officials who discriminated against the Black farmers and who passed the cost of their civil rights violations onto the taxpayers. In a reply letter to Mr. Taylor, dated February 2011, USDA officials failed to address any plans for disciplining public officials who denied Black farmers government farm loans because of the color of their skin (Pigford v Glickman).
About the "Filibuster for Justice":
The event is scheduled to take place in front of US. Department of Agriculture's Washington, DC office, between 12th & 14th Streets SW, Jefferson Drive (Mall Side). The kick-off will begin at 12:00 p.m. {NOON}. Sponsors: Black Farmers http://www.blackfarmers.org and USDA Coalition of Minority Employees http://www.agcoalition.org/
Black Farmers, Employees Protest Outside USDA Building 
WI Web Staff Report Tuesday, 04 October 2011 A Man with a Purpose. Lawrence Lucas, president of the U. S. Department of Agriculture Coalition of Minority Workers, walks past protest signs as he prepares to talk a small crowd gathered about black farmers and minority workers issues in front of the USDA Building in Southwest on Tues. Oct. 4./Photo by Khalid Naji-AllahPresent and former U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) employees and minority farmers gathered on Tuesday (Oct. 4) for a non-stop demonstration in front of the agency's Washington, D.C. office.
The protest served as kick-off day for the "Filibuster for Justice" event which was held to address the lack of accountability at USDA.
"The primary purpose of this event is to continue to bring attention to the American public, the Obama White House, the Congress, and the leadership team of Secretary Tom Vilsack at the Department of Agriculture of the unceasing sexism, racism, reprisal, intimidation, sexual assaults, and other civil and human rights violations that must end for thousands of USDA employees and minority farmers," Lawrence Lucas, president of the USDA Coalition of Minority Employees, said in a statement issued prior to the protest.
According to a 2008 Government Accountability Office study, the USDA "has been addressing allegations of discrimination for decades and receiving recommendations for improving its civil rights functions without achieving fundamental improvements," the statement further read. In addition, according to some present and former USDA employees, Joe Leonard Jr., USDA's assistant secretary for civil rights, has contributed to the inefficiency of USDA's complaint processing," it continued.
"Undisputedly, internal discrimination within USDA continues to negatively impact our communities," said Tanya Ward Jordan, founder of the volunteer organization comprised of former and present employees, who have been injured or ill-treated due to workplace discrimination and/or reprisal, according to the statement.
