Racial Restrictive Covenants Project: Recent Project Updates
Hello Everyone!
The Racial Restrictive Covenants Project would like to thank you for subscribing to our newsletter and for volunteering your time on Zooniverse! Thus far we have had over 730 volunteers on Zooniverse! Thank you all so much for contributing to this work. We couldn’t do it without you.
Here are some project updates:
Racial Restrictive Covenants Project featured on KING 5 News! On November 14th, KING 5 News broadcasted a story on restrictive covenants as a part of their "Facing Race" series. We are grateful for the opportunity to further publicize this issue. The broadcast featured volunteers who worked on our project, as well as Lakeridge residents who shared powerful stories of how deed restrictions still impact their lives today. We encourage you to check it out using the link below!
https://www.king5.com/article/news/community/facing-race/uw-researchers-racist-real-estate-covenants/281-92ab17e5-dd02-4c12-ba1a-6fd06414fec5While searching through restricted deeds in Snohomish County, we came across a restricted deed from the year 1968! Many restrictions we encounter range from the early 1930s to about the late 1950s, so happening upon a restricted deed from 1968 was appalling. I would like to offer a trigger warning for the racist and discriminatory language used below. The restriction from 1968 read as follows:
"That neither the said premises, or any house, building, or improvement thereon erected, shall at any time be occupied by persons of the Ethiopian race, or by Japanese or Chinese, or any other Malay or Asiatic race, or any person of extraction or descent of any such race, save and except as domestic servants in the employ of persons not coming within these restrictions."
We now have preliminary maps of racial restrictions for King, Pierce, and Snohomish County! The research is ongoing, but feel free to explore the maps of these counties using the link below!
https://depts.washington.edu/covenants/counties.shtmlWe are so incredibly thankful to all who volunteer their time to help our project We have added documents to Zooniverse for you to transcribe! Volunteers can now work in on our Whatcom County module.
As you work on Zooniverse, if you have any questions feel free to use the Talk Board on the Zooniverse website, or send us an email at wacovenants@gmail.com. We are available for questions and eager to help!
If you are able, please spread the word about this volunteer opportunity to anyone you think may be interested! We have also been reaching out to various community organizations and churches to see if they would be interested in learning more about our project and participating in our research through Zooniverse. If you know of a community organization that would be interested in something like this please let us know, we would be happy to connect with them!
All the best,
Erin Miller (Research Associate, Racial Restrictive Covenants Project)
Learn More About the Project:
Racial Restrictive Covenants Project Website
Learn About Volunteering Here!
Racial Restrictive Covenant Zooniverse Page