Land-grabbers, Black Land Loss, and Restoration

So, I recently visited with my dad. That is always a joy! Almost every time my dad and I are together, we talk about family farm business or its history. Many times both. As always, I ask questions, lots of them. Cause, that’s what I do. I was and still am a “Why?” kid; big on context questions. And, dads know everything of course, so mine always obliges.

“Who owned this farm before 3-GA we bought it?”

“How much land did 3_GA own?”

“What happened to the rest of it?”

“Why did it happen that way?”

“Are there any records or is this just family hearsay?”

GGGA is Great-great-grandfather-Anthony.

Fortunately, Dad is pretty patient and diplomatic with me. When we get to the last “Why” that he can stand, he will just say, “I don’t know, baby”. Most times his tone is very sweet. Other times, I can see my grandmother’s words coming out of his facial expression. She used to say: “Chile, you is one “worsome” girl!” Lol!

Most times, stories about black land ownership from post-slavery through the 1900s include at least one instance of land theft, sabotage, or destruction. By white people. This is why black farmers were given special consideration in one of this year’s most publicized stimulus earmarks.* And as usual, certain white people are fighting tooth and nail against black landowners receiving it.**

Tales of Land Stealing

Now, back to our farm story. Apparently, “back in the day”, a family by the name of Snowe* was notorious for duping blacks out of their property.

Dad said: “Yeah, Mr. Snowe had so much land! He had houses all over town and every house he owned was red.” According to my dad, many of the Snowes’ properties had been gotten through trickery, taking advantage of the poor, or unscrupulous agreements. For example, they would make loans available to those who were desperately in need with terms that overwhelmingly favored the lender. Such agreements were designed to quickly entrap the borrower in a cycle of intense indebtedness. When the borrower could not pay, the Snowes would confiscate the land/property. Their dealings helped them to snap up the farms, homes and land of many blacks. Probably some poor whites, too. In addition to their business practices, they had the connections in town to avoid the scrutiny and legal ramifications that would have curtailed such activities.

One might ask: “What’s the big deal? It’s just business. The Snowes provided a service with terms of agreement. The borrower agreed. So what if they lost everything. They should have shopped around for a better deal.”

If I were clueless, or valued being greedy for gain at the expense of the downtrodden, I would absolutely agree with you. But really, if you have the love of God in you, you most certainly cannot reason that exploitation of the poor is holy or righteous. If you do, please rethink that and identify the disconnect between your thoughts, your heart, and the faith you say you possess. And, read your Bible some more. The Bible does not support exploitation of the weak for personal gain, whether in personal or business relationships.

What the Snowes did is not unique. At all. It is part of our American history that includes disenfranchisement of non-white and poor people. The Snowes were/are not the only family, individuals, or businesses to target disadvantaged communities for shake and bake type transactions. When reparations proponents ask for redress, it is not just about enslaved ancestors. It’s about the cumulative effect and ongoing practices of our country’s anti-black economic stratification.

Please forgive me if I am beating a dead toboggan (the southern kind). I don’t want to offend any animal lovers, so, toboggan it shall be. If Jesus said to “do unto others as we would have them do unto us” and one consciously and strategically concocts an agreement in which they legally bind someone who is incapable of understanding its legal terms or incapable of meeting the conditions but whose circumstances are so desperate that they have no choice for survival except to enter into questionable agreements – all so that you can end up with their personal property, I would say that’s more sinister than “just business”. It is thievery and land stealing.

It’s amazing how easily my dad can recall these stories. The surviving descendants of the Snowes as well as those whose land was stolen still live with the benefits or losses that resulted from these “transactions”. In fact, one of the Snowes illegally “sold” a small portion of a black family farm as recently as the last 20 years or so. As of today, the perpetrator has refused to correct the situation. Despite multiple confrontations with the victimized family. This is only one current case that I am aware of. Who knows if there are others?

Why Won’t Black People Just Get Over It?

That was a long time ago and we all know that racism is wrong. Why won’t black people just get over who stole what and bad things that happened by and to people who are not alive anymore?

OK, so number one, racism, racial oppression/bias, and white supremacy are not over. They are all still here and still producing and reproducing.

Number two, how is it that white people are able to issue a statute of limitation for holding our systems accountable for racial oppression when white people are not affected by the racial injustices of this system? I’m going to call that a “conflict of interest” and ask those eager, legal, beavers to recuse themselves from the “get over it” process. Did you see what I did there? I combined “legal eagle” and “eager beavers” to connote the picture of someone who is eager, but unqualified and thus not an eagle. Makes sense to me but, nevermind…..

Let me say, for the record, that I am, emphatically, a proponent of forgiveness, healing, and restoration. I believe that these are balms and are most critical to resolving our country’s “racial” issues. However, that does not equate to ignoring what was and how it impacts what is. Pain exists for a reason. That reason is that something is wrong and needs to be made right. Once that happens, the pain can go away. Let’s think about our country’s racial wounds and healing process in a more practical way:

• Some wounds need a little time to heal.
  • Example: “Ow!” Timmy bumped my head on the couch.
• Some wounds need surgery before restoration can occur.
  • Example: “Ow!” Timmy bumped his head on a brick because he flew off of his bike.
• Some wounds need multiple surgeries, follow-up treatments, therapy, and specialists of over a long period of time before full restoration occurs.
  • Example: “Ow!” Timmy bumped his head in a serious accident and survived my the grace of God with serious injuries all over his body.

Why do some American Christians insistent on treating a major trauma with a band-aid? Here’s a little poem I wrote to further reiterate the point:

“Roses are red,

Violets are blue,

racial wounds in this country are deep,

and a band-aid won’t fix them. “

So to answer the question: “Why won’t black people just get over it?” ……. My answer is that, our racial wounds are not “bygones”. They are not an “it” to be hopped over like a tiny puddle. Minimizing or dismissing the impact of racial wounds is the culprit of uncontrolled infection, further injury, pain, and further deterioration. I’m really feeling this medical profession vibe.

Breathe.

But hang in there with me.

We’re almost home.

It is easy to say “Let’s all just get over it and stop talking about ‘it’” when you’re not the one who has anything to get over. Or when you have benefited from or been a perpetrator of injustice. If you are not the one who has suffered the injustice then you are not the one to tell the person who suffered the injustice to get over it. You do not have that right. You do not have that authority. You cannot be trusted. Why? Because that is a selfish response. That response says, “Hey, your wounds makes me uncomfortable. Please stop hurting so I can feel better. Or at least stop doing it in my presence. Your killing my vibe.”…….. Not cool.

A Prescription

Take two loves and call me in the morning…

To my white brothers and sisters in Christ, YOU, can be a blessing and a channel of healing. Listening, supporting, nurturing, opening doors, and delivering with your service rather than your opinions are all very much needed. Or, if you can’t do or say anything restorative, encouraging or life giving, you could just shut up. It’s OK, just don’t say anything. I’m not trying to tell you what to do with your mouth or your choices. You are not my follower. You are Christ’s………………………….I’ll just leave that there.

And, for the record, I also believe that Black Americans have to fight injustices while being responsible for those variables which we have control over. We can read, research, build, save, raise our families well, and love one another well. We can’t hate every white person for what some white people do. As a Christ follower, hating white people should not even be named among the tasks of our daily “To do” list if we are serious about justice.

We all have a part to play in this mission. Dare I say this: black Christians can remember the past without living in the victim-hood and white Christians can do the same without guilt or arrogance. We all must allow our understanding of what was, what is, and what needs to be, to shape our actions, reactions, and interactions.

Restoration, Redemption and Reparations?

I chose not to use the real name of the “Snowe” family for one reason: I serve a God of forgiveness, redemption and restoration. Who am I to presume that others do not deserve the same?

To continue my dad’s story, some of the Snowe descendants have had their own personal realizations about their family’s history of perpetrating injustice. As a result, some have given land back to black families or sold land under very generous terms and conditions. Others have chosen not to associate with the Snowe legacy and have publicly reputed the family’s dealings. What’s more: I do not know all the present day Snowes. For all I know, some of them could be flying BLM flags on their front porches and advocating for a national reparations program for descendants of enslaved Africans. I don’t know. By the way, if any Snowes are reading this blog and you are doing any of the aforementioned, please do tell!

Only God knows the truth behind all the stories, the gains, the losses, the motivations, repentance or lack thereof. That’s His business; He is the Great Judge. He has a way of working in us and through us to bring about the ultimate best – in His way and His timing. Our only job is to submit to Him and allow Him to use us as a part of that beautiful restorative process. If anyone refuses His great grace and His way, then that’s a conversation that will be had with Him on that great judgment day. That has nothing to do with blog post, so I’ll end here and let you think about that one.

*This is not their real name.

**Check out the work of the President of the National Black Farmers Association, John Boyd to learn more: https://www.blackfarmers.org/about