Asheville’s Swimming Pool: Learning from the Past

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In The Sum of Us, author Heather McGhee uses public swimming pools as a metaphor for her thesis that zero-sum thinking about race creates policies that hurt the whole community. In this blog post, learn the history of Asheville’s Recreation Park and how the same zero-sum thinking that led us to “drain the pool” shows up in housing, too.

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Unjust Deeds

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It recently came to the attention of Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity that a parcel of land they purchased possesses a deed which contains a racially restrictive covenant. The language in this deed states that the property cannot be sold to “any person of the colored race.” As an organization that condemns structural racism in our housing system, Asheville Habitat will not transfer this deed to another owner with this abhorrent language.

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Reckoning with Race and Housing

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As an organization that condemns structural racism in our housing system, Asheville Habitat will not transfer this deed to another owner with this abhorrent language. We took the time to learn from the Register of Deeds and work with Pisgah Legal Services to draft new deed language that nullifies the racist restrictions. This is a small step in the right direction and we hope it inspires other property owners to do the same.

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