ISLAND COUNTY: UW study reveals 955 racist housing restrictions in county
Luisa Loi reports from Island County for the Whidbey News-Times. Read the whole story.
Unbeknownst to most, the explanation behind the lack of diversity in many Whidbey neighborhoods has been buried for decades in the records of hundreds of properties.
Since 2021, researchers at the University of Washington and volunteers have discovered the existence of 955 racial restricted properties in Island County. While these are no longer legally enforceable, they’re a reminder that Whidbey and the Pacific Northwest were not left untouched by segregation.
The restrictions, which mainly date from 1930 to 1950, were found in the early records of hundreds of parcels and subdivisions located outside of city and town limits…. Until 1968, these stipulations prohibited properties from being occupied and/or sold to “any person except one belonging to the White or Caucasian race,” with some allowing for non-white domestic servants to occupy the property, as shown in the documents available on the study’s website. Buyers who violated these terms would face litigation.
Restrictive covenants were first established to have no standing in a court of law in 1948 because state enforcement would violate the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment, according to UW. This, however, failed to close some loopholes, with developers still writing restrictions and counties recording them. They finally became effectively illegal in 1968, when Congress passed the Fair Housing Act.
They Said It
…Island County Commissioner Melanie Bacon, who upon finding out from a news inquiry last Wednesday, reacted with a mix of shock and outrage, describing the research findings as “beyond abominable.”
According to Sheilah Crider, the current county auditor, the county’s role is to record documents, and it does not “have the authority to approve or disapprove the content of those documents.”
Still, Bacon would like the county to release a statement of atonement, and if that doesn’t happen, then she will release one herself, as most of the restrictions were found within District 1 (which she represents) and show her predecessors’ signatures, further adding to her frustration.
Visiting South Whidbey, she said, one can’t help but notice the predominantly white population. These restrictions help explain the current demographics and represent an example of systemic racism, she said.
“These are some of the most prime properties on Island County,” Bacon said, pointing out that all the properties shown in the University of Washington’s maps are located by the water. “This was an intentional creation of white wealth in Island County.”
