The rapid decline in the number of farms operated by blacks in the United States, and the consequences of this decline on the conditions of black farmers are the focus of this report. Chapter 1 compares the rate of agricultural land loss from 1900 to 1978 among blacks and whites. Chapter 2 outlines historical conditions, such as racism, lack of institutional economic support, and possession of only marginal landholdings, that contributed to black land loss in the past. Chapter 3 discusses how these historical factors, together with current economic practices that favor large farm operations, have placed black farmers in a disadvantaged, noncompetitive position which threatens their occupational survival. Chapter 4 reviews programs of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA's) Farmers' Home Administration (FmHA) to help black farm operators to keep their land, and analyzes data on black participation in these programs in 1981. Chapter 5 examines USDA's civil rights enforcement activities and assesses their impact on FmHA's loan services to minorities. It is suggested that FmHA's potential to help farmers to work on their land has not been realized because of racial discrimination that civil rights enforcement in USDA does not effectively address. Recommendations for improving this situation are presented. (Author/MJL)