Politics

State Hosts Public Event On Black Community Displacement

A state commission examining how public universities displaced Black communities held its first public event at Virginia Union University, spotlighting the Emmy-winning documentary “Uprooted” and confronting calls for accountability, restitution, and systemic repair.
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By Le’Ren N.G. Jones
Special to the New Journal and Guide

A Virginia state legislative commission examining the displacement of Black communities by public universities held its first community event on Feb. 21, at the Allix B. James Chapel in Coburn Hall on Virginia Union University’s campus.

Saturday afternoon’s event, hosted by Delegate Delores McQuinn (D-Richmond), featured a screening of the 2023 Emmy Award–winning documentary Uprooted, directed by investigative journalist Brandi Kellam, and an accompanying photo exhibit. The film explores the erasure of a historic Black neighborhood in Newport News due to Christopher Newport University’s expansion.

McQuinn, who chairs the Commission to Study the History of the Uprooting of Black Communities by Public Institutions of Higher Education in the Commonwealth, said the gathering was intended to acknowledge the history of displacement and its ongoing impacts.

She described the uprooting of Black communities as driven by deliberate public policy.

“The expansion of universities into Black neighborhoods and highway constructions through Black communities and public housing and zoning decisions, we can say the historical truth is that it was intentional.”

McQuinn added that institutions have a responsibility to help address those harms.

“If these institutions benefited from the displacement of [Black] communities,” McQuinn stated, “then those same institutions have a moral obligation to be a part of the repair.”

The program’s discussion following the film screening centered around concerns of displacement and housing policy.

Moderated by Judge Birdie Jamison, a panel of experts addressed issues affecting Black communities, including urban renewal, gentrification, and the use of eminent domain.

Dwayne Johnson, whose family’s experience was depicted in the film, described displacement as the loss of a tightly connected neighborhood and the future it represented.

“We were looking at the start of something really great,” said Johnson as he reflected on plans his family had before a large swath of their land was seized through eminent domain.

He added that losing the land also meant losing both legacy and opportunity.

“One of the keys to wealth in this country, it’s always been property ownership. So if you really want to control a community, take their property.”

Kellam said the destruction of such communities reflects a broader historical pattern across Virginia.

“There was one point after Reconstruction,” she said, “where 60% of landowners were Black in the state. You don’t see that today.”

Darlene Black Giles, a former Charles City County treasurer, emphasized that legal and administrative barriers have also contributed to land loss over generations.

“We need to understand the legalities of owning property,” said Giles. “We have to educate people [on the importance of] leaving a good record of what you want, how you want your property passed down through generations.”

Davarian Baldwin, a scholar and historian who was also featured in the film, said urban renewal policies tied to institutional expansion have displaced communities nationwide, with similar patterns appearing in cities including Chicago and Denver and abroad in countries such as Thailand and the Netherlands.

“The same policies that were manufactured here are being duplicated and also targeting their communities of color.”

He added that the results of these displacements weakened social systems.

“We don’t talk enough about how destroying these Black communities was by design to disrupt our armor to withstand these conditions.”

One attendee comment during the event shed light on limited public awareness of the issue.

“I am a 40-plus year educator.” The attendee said, “and I have, until this day, not heard of this. So I stand in my ignorance to say thank you for the education I’ve received today.”

The discussion also focused on authenticity in storytelling and repair.

Kellam, whose reporting helped spur the commission’s creation, emphasized that telling the full history of displacement should include the voices of those affected.

“If you don’t get the story right, you’re only causing more harm to the families,” Kellam said.

“It’s about truth and transparency,” said Dr. Cleve V. Tinsley IV, a history and humanities professor at Virginia Union University. “Can we have access to the full archives of these colleges and institutions?”

Tinsley also suggested that displaced communities demand community investment.

“Can we have housing, land trusts and support for homeownership? As it relates to education, can we look at scholarships for displaced communities? Economically, what kind of commitments can they make to Black businesses?”

Delegate Bonita Anthony (D-Norfolk), a member of the state commission who was also in attendance, encouraged lawmakers to look at the issue systemically.

“Our charge now is to take this and [ask] what is it we can do to dismantle the entire system,” Anthony said.

Afterward, she underscored that repair should be a central focus of the commission’s work.

“It’s important that we provide restitution,” she said.

McQuinn expressed similar sentiments during the discussion.

“We call for accountability and repair,” said McQuinn, “Historical acknowledgement, public apologies, community reinvestment, affordable housing, land trusts, economic programs for descendants, [and] inclusion of community voices in the planning.”

Reiterating the purpose of the commission, she emphasized the responsibility of public institutions to acknowledge past harms.

“Growth should never come at the cost of erasing history and community,” Delegate McQuinn said. “Progress should lift communities up, not push them out.”

She added that the consequences of past policy decisions continue to affect families across generations.

“The question before us today is not whether this happened. The question is, what are we willing to do now to make it right?”

Le’Ren N.G. Jones is a Mass Communications/Journalism Student at Norfolk State University

All photos by Le’Ren N.G. Jones