This year marks the 40th anniversary of Farm Aid. The annual concert supporting farmers began in 1985 during the depths of the farm crisis.
Fourth-generation Texas farmer David Senter remembers those days well.
During the 1970s, he was one of the initial Texas organizers of the American Agriculture Movement. Senter led farm protests, once driving a tractor from Fort Worth, Texas, all the way to Washington, D.C.
In 1980, then-Texas Gov. Bill Clements appointed him to be the state’s first full-time advocate for farmer and rancher interests in the nation’s capital.
“The financial problems were increasing across rural America, and by 1985, we were losing over 350 family farms a day,” Senter recalls.
Senter and others farmer advocates worked hard to block farm auctions and bring attention to the growing crisis. In March 1985, they brought about 3,000 farmers to Washington. They made 350 white crosses, each bearing the name of a farmer who had either committed suicide or been foreclosed on.
The farmers then marched from the Jefferson Memorial to USDA headquarters, where they created a “graveyard” with those crosses in front of those buildings.
Around the same time, singer Willie Nelson was performing at various fairs across the country. He’d grown up in tiny Abbott, Texas, about 40 miles from where Senter was born.
As Nelson traveled across the country roads, he noticed an increasing number of farm foreclosure signs. In August 1985, he called Senter and suggested they organize a concert for farmers.
“We talked about it, and I told him I thought it was a great idea,” Senter recalls. “Those farmers that were struggling, that were losing their homes and their farms, they needed to know they weren’t alone.”
One month later, Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Ill., was filled with about 80,000 fans eager for a once-in-a-lifetime show.
Nelson and fellow Farm Aid founders Neil Young and John Mellencamp were joined on stage by country legends (Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, George Jones), top-selling rock stars (Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Billy Joel), nostalgia acts (Beach Boys, B.B. King, Roy Orbison) and even hair metal bands (Bon Jovi). In all, more than 50 artists performed on that September day.
The show ended up raking in more than $6 million for farmer emergency services, legal support and rural community initiatives.
One-time show becomes enduring movement
Farm Aid’s founders originally intended the show to be a one-off event. Their goal was to raise awareness of farm-related issues and distribute money to grassroots organizations. But come the following year, they realized there was still a need for another show. And then another.
Before they knew it, Farm Aid had become a full-fledged movement, investing millions to support farmers and ranchers across the U.S.
Today, Farm Aid is a year-round organization, working to help farmers on multiple fronts. It operates a hotline to connect farmers to resources. It also partners with various agriculture groups to provide farmer assistance.
The organization’s core mission now includes addressing mental health issues, combating corporate consolidation, striving for equality and combating climate change.
Farm Aid policy and advocacy manager Hannah Tremblay emphasizes that the organization works to address those issues on a bipartisan basis.
“We’re totally nonpartisan,” she says. “We don’t support one candidate or one party over another, but we do advocate for certain policies.”
To do that, the organization builds relationships with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. Unsurprisingly, that means lots of attention on hot-button issues such as the farm bill and ensuring federal policies are crafted with farmers in mind.
Tremblay says much of her work involves striving to educate people on the potential impacts of government actions on agriculture. Those policies are often hard to untangle and are constantly evolving. She works with a staff of about 22 people to provide assistance and expertise.
“We think of ourselves as a big-tent organization that includes commodity farmers and small, diversified farmers,” she says.
Before the weekend concert, Farm Aid and its partner organizations typically get together to share ideas and plan a course of action. While the show is obviously the weekend highlight, those meetings are often just as impactful.
About the concert
This year’s Farm Aid concert is scheduled for Sept. 20 at Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. Founders Nelson, Young and Mellencamp will once again take the stage, along will fellow board members Dave Matthews and Margo Price. They will be joined by about a dozen other artists, including Kenny Chesney, Billy Strings, Nathaniel Rateliff, Wynona Judd and more.
Senter plans on being there as well. He’s one of the few people who’s been with Nelson and Farm Aid through every show.
“I haven’t missed a single one in 40 years,” he says. “I’m pretty fortunate and pretty proud of that.”