This article aims to uncover how family relationships affect Black land ownership through a specific example found in South Carolina. The researchers implemented ethnography and archival research to examine past and current land ownership situations between the Gullah/Geechee families. What they found was that the strong connections between family members, even if they were not related by blood, often pushed the people to speak up and fight against the governments that tried to limit their access to land.
While some might see this as a powerful conclusion to the study, these results are not anything groundbreaking. It is already well known that most people work better in groups than on their own, so the idea that the people who lived with their family were more motivated to push back against the government is not a surprise. Plus, this study mainly focused on two families from the state of South Carolina. The exact results of the study could be due to factors such as the location where this study was conducted and the culture that surrounds that location.
Lisa Moore proves that, yet again, strong community ties are the key to bringing about change. Granted, there are some instances where people lose all hope in trying to fix their city simply because they know their government does not care. For the most part, however, cities where people have a strong sense of connection with their family or neighbors are the ones that end up making efforts to fix the problems that exist in their community. Flint, Michigan, would be a great example of this. All it takes to start a movement is for one person to decide if they are tired of living in their current conditions.
Moore, Lisa. “Gullah Geechee Families: Land and Culture.” Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal, vol. 9, no. 1, 2017, article 8