Erasure by Statute: Law, Land, and the Struggle of Coastal African American Communities
Faculty Mentor
Akiv J. Dawson, Ph. D
Location
Russell Union Room 2084
Type of Research
On-going
Session Format
Oral Presentation
College
College of Behavioral & Social Sciences
Department
Center for Africana Studies
Abstract
This study examines how law and policy contribute to the dispossession and erasure of Coastal African American communities along the Georgia coast and, where relevant, comparable Sea Island communities. Using a qualitative, phenomenological approach, the project centers lived experience and first-person narrative to document how formal mechanisms such as zoning and land-use controls, property taxation, heirs’ property vulnerabilities, coastal permitting, infrastructure siting, and selective code enforcement reshape land tenure, restrict community continuity, and accelerate displacement.
Data collection will include semi-structured interviews with adult community members and stakeholders (for example, elders, landowners, descendants of founding families, faith and community leaders, advocates, and local practitioners involved in housing, land, or planning). Interviews will focus on participants’ experiences with land retention, governance, and encounters with local and state institutions, as well as community-defined strategies for preservation and equitable development. Findings will be used to map patterns of legal harm, clarify the relationship between policy and displacement, and elevate community-led remedies grounded in self-determination, cultural preservation, and justice.
Program Description
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Start Date
4-23-2026 3:30 PM
End Date
4-23-2026 3:45 PM
Recommended Citation
James, Thomas L., "Erasure by Statute: Law, Land, and the Struggle of Coastal African American Communities" (2026). GS4 Student Scholars Symposium. 267.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/research_symposium/2026/2026/267
Erasure by Statute: Law, Land, and the Struggle of Coastal African American Communities
Russell Union Room 2084
This study examines how law and policy contribute to the dispossession and erasure of Coastal African American communities along the Georgia coast and, where relevant, comparable Sea Island communities. Using a qualitative, phenomenological approach, the project centers lived experience and first-person narrative to document how formal mechanisms such as zoning and land-use controls, property taxation, heirs’ property vulnerabilities, coastal permitting, infrastructure siting, and selective code enforcement reshape land tenure, restrict community continuity, and accelerate displacement.
Data collection will include semi-structured interviews with adult community members and stakeholders (for example, elders, landowners, descendants of founding families, faith and community leaders, advocates, and local practitioners involved in housing, land, or planning). Interviews will focus on participants’ experiences with land retention, governance, and encounters with local and state institutions, as well as community-defined strategies for preservation and equitable development. Findings will be used to map patterns of legal harm, clarify the relationship between policy and displacement, and elevate community-led remedies grounded in self-determination, cultural preservation, and justice.
