The 4-H program's mission statement includes "a promise to America's kids to reflect the population demographics, vulnerable populations, diverse needs, and social conditions of the country." In 2017, however, USDA administration pressured the national 4-H organization to retract its LGBT+ inclusion policies. Shortly after, John-Paul Chaisson-Cardenas, the progressive 4-H Youth Development Program director who had been working hard to boost equity and diversity, was fired. Lindsey speaks with Chaisson-Cardenas, Dr. Sonny Ramaswamy, former director of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), and investigative reporter Jason Clayworth about the implications of these actions and what's next for the youth leadership organization and its 6 million members.

Further resources:

The retracted policies: https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/5096567-Iowa-Policy.html

https://4-h.org/about/what-is-4-h/

https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/investigations/2018/11/18/4-h-transgender-lgbt-iowa-john-paul-chaisson-cardenas-iowa-state-university-civil-rights/1572199002/

https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/investigations/2019/01/23/4-h-congress-information-trump-agency-push-dump-lgbt-policy-usda-lqbtq-stand-for-projects-policy/2662533002/

https://youtu.be/tyYUpzjJVxU

https://youtu.be/PN0SJjNh0sQ

Illustration was created for the Des Moines Register by Mark Marturello.