On Thursday November 14th, from five to seven, Transylvania’s Student Government Association and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion department hosted an academic presentation, “Lexington, Ky: Segregated by Design.” This was presented by researchers Rona Roberts and Barbara Sutherland, who have lived in Lexington for the past 50 years. Roberts is a writer and organization development advisor while Sutherland is a retired city employee and librarian. The two lifelong friends decided to start researching how systematic racism impacted the Lexington community during the summer of 2020. Their presentation described the specific history of Lexington’s residential segregation and how the repercussions are still in effect today. Their research shows that issues today such as the Black-White wealth gap, unequal homeownership opportunities, and everyday inequalities all have a connection to unjust residential segregation. Roberts and Sutherland referenced Richard Rothstein’s The Color of Law and asked themselves if redlining, realtor steering, planning and zoning practices, urban renewal, and racially restrictive deed covenants applied to neighborhoods here in Lexington.
By researching documents in the Fayette County Deed Book, they found racially restrictive covenants from the late 1800s to 1948. These covenants created White-only neighborhoods and restricted the race of individuals who could legally own, rent, or live on a given property. Their research showed specific neighborhoods in Lexington with restrictive covenants such as Goodrich Avenue, Liberty Heights Subdivision, and the Beechland Subdivision, which later became part of Kenwick. Looking at how these covenants affect us now, Sutherland and Roberts spoke about how Black families had fewer housing opportunities. The lack of building equity compared to White families who were able to buy deed-restricted homes up to 1948 and those homes continued to build equity.
Roberts and Sutherland also discussed how redlining impacted Lexington communities. The main factor for redlining was the Federal Housing Administration and how race was used to limit the ability to receive a home loan in certain neighborhoods. Their research shows that in 1948, subdivisions began to expand, but Black families only had access to 225 plots out of the 15,546 platted. Today, we are able to see the lasting impacts of redlining by examining generational wealth. Research presents how there is a large wealth gap today, with Black households earning 16 cents for every dollar earned by White households.
Lexington’s planning and zoning did a poor job of protecting neighborhoods equally, especially for Black and low-income families. Research shows that zoning created unhealthy uses of post-Civil War settlements and reduced equity and inclusion in Lexington neighborhoods. They also discussed how Black families were severely affected by realtor steering which was shown to be required in the Realtors’ National Ethics Code. Roberts and Sutherland elaborated on how the Fair Housing Act made racial steering illegal in 1968, and in 2020, the National Association of Realtors apologized for their past. Their research shows that progress has been made with the NAACP and Fair Housing Council, but there are still long-term impacts of realtor steering. Research today shows that there is still ongoing segregation and a large gap in homeownership with 60% of White households and 34% of Black households.
Their research as of now concludes that Lexington was segregated by design. Roberts and Sutherland emphasize how segregation impacts our communities today. This presentation was to show their work thus far, as they will be continuing to investigate restrictive deeds for the Lexington Community. If you have any interest in this volunteering or inquiring about restrictive deed research, please contact Barbara Sutherland at aldenruths@gmail.com.
