Name Games: Deeds, Mortgages, and the Conventions of Race

Emancipatory Empiricism: The Rural Sociology of W.E.B. Du Bois

“…for generations; and yet this has been far from the case” (Du Bois 1901b:648). For Du Bois, this somewhat surprising positive sign “is of the greatest sociological interest” as he continued to accurately document the connections between social policy, land ownership patterns, and continued economic inequality in southern rural communities (p. 648), yet another topic shared with contemporary rural sociology (see Dyer and Bailey 2008; Gilbert, Sharp, et al 2002; Gilbert, Wood, and Sharp 2002; Green, Green, and Kleiner 2011; Hargis 1998, 2002; Hinson and Robinson 2008; Schweninger 1990; Wood 2006; Wood and Gilbert 2000; Wood and Ragar 2012; Zabawa, Siaway, and Baharanyi 1990).…”

“…Du Bois noted that Georgia is important for the study of Black communities as it “holds a mass of peculiarly self-reliant Black folk” and because Georgia has collected “detailed record of Negro landholding, extending over a quarter of a century” (p. 648). In fact, no other state has such detailed records on land ownership by race (see Hargis 1998, 2002; Schweninger 1990). Land and property ownership was critical to the development of rural Black communities, and recognizing this fact, Du Bois accumulated data to speak to the potential for social mobilization among rural Black families.…”

“…His discussion of the importance of Black landownership is echoed in the more general discussion of the characteristics of common tenants, including being younger, less educated, less healthy, and less involved in community affairs. The social importance of Black-owned farmland in the Black Belt continues to be part of contemporary rural sociology (see Hargis 1998, 2002; Gilbert, Wood, et al 2002; Grant, Wood, and Wright 2012; Schweninger 1990; Wood and Gilbert 2000). His critical discussion of modern agricultural production with its emphasis on expanded production, mono-cropping, and profit-driven production of food, also predates the critical turn within the “new” rural sociology and the sociology of agriculture by nearly a century (Falk and Gilbert 1985; Newby and Buttel 1980).…”

Rapid Property Transactions and Price Changes: An Exploratory Study in Forensic Geographic Information System (GIS)

“…As the example of the Fair Housing Officer shows, people familiar with a local market can sometimes notice individual a n o m a l i e s , b u t d i s c o v e r i n g m o r e widespread or systematic patterns of flipped properties is nearly impossible, even for a knowledgeable local observer, without in-depth examination of many sales. Searching through deed transfers and related records can be a tedious process (Hargis 2002), and few public officials have time to undertake this kind of job. If the deed transfers and other public records are available in electronic form, it can be much quicker.…”