A Moral Duty to Uphold the Family Farm”

The 1980s Farm Crisis began receiving national attention in the middle of the decade in large part because of Hollywood films such as Country and the star-studded Farm Aid concert. However, religious leaders and organizations had already started to warn of an impending crisis as early as 1978. They were motivated by a scriptural belief in land stewardship as well as empathy for their struggling rural parishioners. Throughout a series of noteworthy conferences, position statements, and protest actions coordinated by religious organizations across the denominational spectrum, Midwest-based leaders increasingly attempted to raise awareness, influence public policy, and bear witness to the escalating crisis. This article documents these ecumenical efforts during a pivotal time in America's rural history and provides a new angle on the farm crisis of the 1980s

Business · Crisis response · Economic growth · Economics · Empathy · Political science · Position (finance · Public relations · Sociology · Stewardship (theology · Witness · Worship · Agriculture, Land Use, Rural Development · Law · Psychology · Religion, Society, and Development · Social Psychology · Urban Agriculture and Sustainability