evidence: The history of discrimination at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is long and deep. In 1920, 925,000 Black farmers operated in the U.S., according to USDA data. That number plummeted to just 35,000 farms with Black producers in the U.S. by 2017. [...] Also this week, Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey re-introduced the Justice for Black Farmers Act, which would aim to end discrimination at the USDA and restore lost land to Black farmers. "Overtly discriminatory and unjust federal policy has robbed Black families in the United States of the ability to build and pass on intergenerational wealth," Booker said in a statement. "When it comes to farming and agriculture, we know that there is a direct connection between discriminatory policies within the USDA and the enormous land loss we have seen among Black farmers over the past century."