CRT2 S3 Ep2: Eminent Domain: Discriminatory Land Takings and the Fight for Reparations

This episode of CRT2 takes a look at eminent domain under the Fifth Amendment “Takings Clause,” and the way it has been used to disproportionately displace Black and other racialized communities in the name of urban renewal and “public use.” Indeed, the displacement of Black communities in particular was so synonymous with “urban renewal” in the United States that it was regularly referred to as “Negro removal.” We see the prevalence of this trend in cases across the country, in Baltimore, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, and New York, just to name a few. The land is declared “blighted” and seized under the power of eminent domain to make way for various urban planning projects. In New York City for example, the Lincoln Center and surrounding area was once known as San Juan Hill, a thriving community consisting largely of African American, Afro-Caribbean, and Puerto Rican residents. It was famous for its bustling jazz clubs and dance halls, and was the birthplace of the Charleston, bebop, and famous musicians like Thelonious Monk and James P. Johnson. An area of Central Park was once known as Seneca Village — another thriving community — founded by free African Americans in 1855. Many of its African American residents owned property, which granted them a right to vote at the time. The land was seized to create Central Park. In more recent times, land was seized through eminent domain to make way for expanding the Columbia University campus into the West Harlem Manhattanville neighbourhood. One unique aspect of this taking, however, is the Community Benefits Agreement that Columbia entered into with the West Harlem Development Corporation in 2009. Nevertheless, we have seen some progress toward justice for these communities and what reparations might look like. Bruce’s Beach was seized from Willa and Charles Bruce under the power of eminent domain exercised by a local Southern California government in 1924. It was a beachfront property along the Southern California coast, where they operated a flourishing beach resort for Black families — it was one of the few places where Black people could have access to a beach. In 2021, almost 100 years after the taking, the property was approved to be returned back to the Bruce family. In this episode, we talk to Kavon Ward, the founder of Where is My Land about her ground-breaking work surrounding the return of Bruce’s Beach, and the road to reparations for these communities who had land stolen from them. We also talk to Professor Flores Forbes, an urban planner and adjunct professor at Columbia Law School, and his work in relation to the Columbia University Manhattanville expansion.

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