"OUR RICH BLACK HERITAGE" : THE "INVOLUNTARY LOSS" OF "BLACKOWNED LAND" IN LOUISIANA

OUR RICH BLACK HERITAGE :                                                                           THE "INVOLUNTARY LOSS" OF "BLACKOWNED LAND"  IN LOUISIANA                                                                           Well, Well, Well, when it comes to the "WAYS BLACK PEOPLE LOSE THEIR FAMILY LAND INVOLUNTARILY," it seems that "EMINENT DOMAIN" and the "FORCED SELLING" OF HEIR PROPERTY," heads the list!!! While I have included in my past articles how the State of Louisiana has used EMINENT DOMAIN to acquire land from Black People during the 1960s to make way for Highway Systems across the state,"THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I AM WRITING ABOUT THE FORCED SELLING OF HEIR PROPERTY!" Recently, I researched and found out that at much of the land in Monroe, Louisiana that Black People "ONCE OWNED OUT-RIGHT WAS LOST DUE TO THE FORCED SELLING OF HEIR PROPERTY!" Also, I have a friend who often posts on Facebook about how his siblings went against him and sold the Heir Property that his mother had left them. Also, I'm willing to bet that most of the people who read the Monroe Free Press has heard about a Black Family losing Family Property, because they received a letter saying that they had to sell their land. By the way, there was a recorded instance in Louisiana involving the forced selling of Heir Property. The incident involved the "TRUDIE STANLEY FAMILY HEIR PROPERTY, LOCATED IN CLAIBORNE PARISH."          As the story goes, a distant relative within the Stanley’s family sold their interest in the Stanley Heir Property to a timber company. The timber company was then able to "PETITION FOR A PARTITION," which led to a forced sale or auction of the property. Another relative discovered the property was for sale in the newspaper, and alerted family members living on the property. Even though the Stanley Family was able to raise about $500,000 to buy back their land, the timber company outbid the family at $600,000. Therefore, Trudie Stanley and her family had to vacate their land, despite their diligent fight to save their land. Although the story was about a family that most of us didn't know personally, what about the family or families that we are aware of who had to endure such a terrible experience? In closing, it is my hope that the Black Families in Louisiana will think harder when deciding how to deal with their "HEIR PROPERTY!"