Effort to change racist covenants is more than symbolic
The decision by the Rodgers Forge community to file a request to remove racist covenants from historic deeds may seem like just a symbolic gesture. The 85 records with discriminatory language that prohibited African Americans and other people of color from living in the 1,800-home neighborhood (unless they were the domestic workers of white residents) haven’t been enforceable since the 1968 Fair Housing Act. So, some are bound to ask, what does it matter that the language is still there if it is not meaningful?
It would have also sent sent a message to African Americans and other people of color living in the neighborhood that it is OK to brush off offensive language. While most people in the neighborhood probably never knew the covenants existed, the wording would have been an unnecessary reminder to those who came across it that they once didn’t belong — and certainly might make them wonder whether some people still don’t want them. Is the thinking still alive if the covenants still exist? Getting rid of the language, including the egregious statement that “no person of any race other than the white race shall use or occupy any building on any lot,” shows that the community realizes the hurtful and angry feelings it may rouse up among some of their neighbors. At least one resident told The Sun she felt nauseated when reading the covenants. Those are legitimate feelings that should be addressed.
Do the old covenants turn off African Americans considering a move into the neighborhood? We can’t say for sure, but Rodgers Forge remains about 84% non-Hispanic white, about 23 percentage points higher than the county-wide figure. Laws no longer allow housing discrimination, but many people still self-segregate, and neighborhoods are unofficially known as welcoming to one race or another. Rodgers Forge features affordable housing, good schools, lower crime and taxes than many Baltimore city neighborhoods, as well as easy reach to restaurants, shopping and other amenities. But it lacks diversity. Anything that extends an olive branch to change the notion of white and black neighborhoods is a step in the right direction. A change in covenants is a meaningful way of saying Rodgers Forge is truly welcoming to people of different backgrounds.
Of course removing covenants isn’t the panacea for all segregation issues. Redlining, discrimination in mortgage loans and other factors are still major problems that must continue to be addressed. But it is a good start and yeoman’s work for a neighborhood.