Eva M. Clayton: “Well, we have a number of farmers in North Carolina who have filed not only part of a class action, but we have a number…”

“Well, we have a number of farmers in North Carolina who have filed not only part of a class action, but we have a number of farmers who have filed administrative complaints, and some of them have been 17 years old, 20 years old, and now they are being told they are barred until 2 years. So that means 22 years of their being barred will have no recourse. They are not able to get assistance from that. What is so devastating about this is that this is our government doing it to us, not so much that this is a place where you think you would come and get some consideration or remuneration for your suffering and pain. And these farmers are being told, not only were they deceived and ignored, but there is no sense of equity. There was no sense on the part of the Justice Department in saying that the estoppel of the statute of limitations should not have been put in place because of the acts of the government itself. The government was saying they were investigating and did not do it. The government was saying they were going to find a remedy and did not do it. You would think the acts would bar the statute of limitations. Even if the law requires it, equity requires it, and people put in such pain and disadvantage, the equity of the case would prevail. This is what we call justice. The rule of law is based on having equity and fairness, in addition to the statute.”