Congressional Black Caucus Meets with Agriculture Secretary Over Unjust Firing of Shirley Sherrod

Chairwoman Lee Releases Statement Following Meeting with Agriculture Secretary 
Vilsack 
Wednesday, July 21, 2010 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 
Contact : Nicole Y. Williams or J. Jioni Palmer 
Washington D.C. – Today Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA), Chairwoman of the 
Congressional Black Caucus, released the following statement following a meeting 
of the Congressional Black Caucus with Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack 
regarding the handling of matter resulting in the resignation of Shirley 
Sherrod. 
 
“We want to thank Secretary Tom Vilsack for meeting with the Congressional Black 
Caucus today regarding the issues surrounding the resignation of Shirley 
Sherrod. During the meeting we expressed our concern regarding the handling of 
the situation. Secretary Vilsack assured us that there would be a full review of 
the process which led to this unfortunate situation. 
 
“We appreciate the apology issued today by the Administration and Secretary 
Vilsack personally. He reiterated those same sentiments during our meeting. 
 
“We expressed to Secretary Vilsack that as the Administration and Department of 
Agriculture begins the process of repairing the damage from this situation, we 
are willing to work with them to ensure an equitable and fair outcome for Ms. 
Sherrod. The meeting also provided an opportunity to openly discuss longstanding 
issues of equity within the U.S. Department of Agriculture such as funding for 
land grant colleges and the Black and Native American Farmers settlement to 
address decades-long discrimination. 
 
“Shirley Sherrod’s story – the true story she told as evidenced in the full tape 
of her remarks that has now been released – is one that we can use as the 
starting point for a real dialogue on race. 
 
“As Americans, we need to build a shared understanding of our country's history 
as we work to build a more perfect union. We look forward to continued dialogue 
with Secretary Vilsack and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.” 
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J. Jioni Palmer 
Communications Director 
Congressional Black Caucus 
(202) 226-1912 - office 
(202) 579-5486 - cell