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States, including Oregon and Washington, grapple with removing racist language in home deeds

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States, including Oregon and Washington, grapple with removing racist language in home deeds


Lisa Boccetti is horrified by the restrictive covenant that is in the deed to her 1950s ranch house in Raleigh, North Carolina: It states that the land cannot be sold or occupied by Black people.

The property “shall not” be sold to Black people, “and said premises shall not be occupied“ by Black people, except domestic servants and their families, employed by the occupants of the premises, the original deed states.

She and her husband, Bob Williams, would like to remove the offensive language, which hasn’t been legally binding for more than half a century, but North Carolina doesn’t have a process to do so. In 2021, two state senators filed legislation to give homeowners a way to erase such covenants, but the bill was sent to a committee and died.

“It’s infuriating, because unless your state has a process in place through legislation to remove or repudiate the contract, there’s nothing you can do to make it go away,” Boccetti said.

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In recent years, more than a dozen states have passed laws repudiating historical, racially restrictive covenants embedded in property deeds that prohibited the sale of those homes to Black residents or, depending on the community, to immigrants from certain countries such as Poland or Ireland, or to Jews or Asian Americans.

In some states, such as Oregon and Washington, new laws now allow the historical wording to be removed altogether.

Lawmakers have touted the new laws, passed with bipartisan support, as a formal rebuke to segregationist housing policies and the symbolic closing of a dark chapter in American history. The U.S. Supreme Court declared the covenants unconstitutional in 1948; the federal Fair Housing Act of 1968 outlawed them.

Covenant clauses that prevented non-whites from buying or occupying land were a tool that enforced segregation in U.S. communities across the country in the early to mid-20th century, led to discrimination by banks and, researchers note, have lingering effects today.

“I emphasize all the time that efforts to discharge the language in these covenants needs to be the start of a conversation, not the end of a conversation,” said Michael Corey, a researcher for the Mapping Prejudice project at the University of Minnesota, which focuses on the causes of segregation in Minneapolis and St. Paul.

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“We can’t erase history because it makes white people uncomfortable,” Corey said in an interview. “We have to understand how this history has disadvantaged minority populations from access to wealth building.”

Historians and researchers praise one state’s covenant law for looking to the future as well as the past: Washington state’s measure not only recognizes the harmful effects of past real estate discrimination but also seeks to rectify it, at least in part.

The law, which Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee signed in May, levies a fee of $100 on all real estate transactions to fund a so-called covenant homeownership account.

That account will provide down payments and closing cost loans to certain first-time homebuyers who were, or would have been, prevented from buying properties prior to April 11, 1968, when the Fair Housing Act became law.

The descendants of people who were or would have been harmed by the covenants also are eligible. All recipients must have incomes at or below 100% of an area’s median income, however. The fee is projected to generate between $75 million and $100 million annually, according to a legislative analysis.

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Washington has yet to determine how much assistance qualifying homebuyers will receive, and under what conditions, but the new fund is supposed to begin disbursing money next July.

Upon House passage of the bill, sponsor state Rep. Jamila Taylor described it as a “focused and thoughtful” approach to help “right the wrongs of the past.”

“The deliberate and harmful barriers preventing Black homeownership impact intergenerational wealth and housing security,” Taylor, a Democrat, said in a statement on her legislative site. “Because this racial discrimination was targeted, the solution must also be targeted.”

The homeownership rate among Black, Hispanic, Asian and Indigenous people in Washington state is 49%, 19 percentage points lower than that of non-Hispanic white households, according to a state report released last year. Only 31% of Black households own their homes, the report said.

“History has taught us that it took generations of systemic, racist, and discriminatory policies and practices to get to where we are today,” the report states.

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It cites restrictive covenants but also redlining, or the denial of loans to people residing in poor or minority neighborhoods. It also blames so-called blockbusting, in which real estate speculators preyed on white fears by introducing a Black family to a neighborhood, persuading fleeing white homeowners to sell at below-market rates, then reselling those homes at high prices to new Black families.

Oregon’s law, signed by Gov. Tina Kotek, allows redaction of discriminatory language from real estate documents. It was modeled after the Washington state law, which was upheld by Washington’s Supreme Court in 2022, but does not include the fee element.

During the debate over the Washington state bill, at least one Republican argued that the $100 transaction fee would harm the first-time homebuyers and lower-income people the legislation was designed to help.

But James Gregory, a history professor at the University of Washington, said paying for compensation “is a central piece of what the model legislation would look like if states were actually trying to restore the harms of these covenants.”

“These covenants not only caused segregation, but it limited homeownership opportunities for generations of people,” Gregory said. “If you’re trying to undo those harms, you need to take measures to reopen those opportunities that were never available.”

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Richard Rothstein, whose 2017 book, “The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America,” documented how federal, state and local policies explicitly created racially homogenous neighborhoods, told Stateline that merely removing racist covenants won’t address current housing disparities. He described the covenants as “the least important of these policies affecting systemic barriers in housing, especially after they lost enforcement power.”

But Rothstein, a fellow at the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute, praised the Washington bill as “a justifiable measure to restore harm done through those covenants.”

Washington’s law is the exception, however.

In Nevada, which enacted a law renouncing racist covenants earlier this year, sponsor Sen. Dallas Harris said she would have liked to emulate Washington state’s approach. Harris said the covenants “created systemic barriers to homeownership and capital” in her state, and that while she knew they had existed before she began pushing her bill, she didn’t realize how extensively they were used.

But Harris said a bill similar to Washington’s was a nonstarter in Nevada, which has a Republican governor.

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“It was important for me to find a way to strike hurtful and harmful language, without making attempts to erase what the damage that these covenants caused,” she told Stateline. She said a law such as Washington’s is “the ultimate goal.”

“Taking action steps and providing actual compensation for the harm that’s done is good policy,” she said. “But it may be hard to do that in some states, financially or politically.”

In the Raleigh area where Lisa Boccetti and Bob Williams live, nearly 74% of white residents own their homes, while less than 46% of Black residents and about 47% of Hispanic residents are homeowners, according to census data.

Boccetti and Williams, who are white, are voluntarily leading a project to pore through property record books and catalog racial covenants to create a searchable database for the Wake County Register of Deeds, where Raleigh is located.

Tammy Brunner, a Democrat and the register of deeds, told Stateline the project can help explain how today’s neighborhoods were shaped.

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“We strongly believe that once we pull out all of the restrictive covenants, we will create a map of redlining in the county and we’ll find that the underserved communities were created by these covenants,” she said.

Boccetti hopes the effort helps to spur covenant legislation in the GOP-controlled legislature.

Discovering the restrictive covenant in her deed and the struggle to remove it “has been a learning experience,” she said.

“It’s allowed us to see the ways why our neighborhood has been shaped the way it is,” she said. “It’s something we must grapple with, even if it makes us uncomfortable.”

Stateline is part of States Newsroom, a national nonprofit news organization focused on state policy.

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©2023 States Newsroom. Visit at stateline.org. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.



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Washington

Early Storylines For Lions Playoff Matchup Against Commanders

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Early Storylines For Lions Playoff Matchup Against Commanders


The Detroit Lions (15-2) will welcome a Washington Commanders (13-5) team riding high after their first playoff victory in decades.

New head coach Dan Quinn has rebuilt the culture and has a young signal-caller that earned the respect of his teammates.

After defeating the Buccaneers, 23-20, a whole new challenge awaits the upstart NFC East squad.

Detroit is now rested and will be fully prepared to win in front of their home fans at Ford Field.

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Dan Campbell has his team and the entire organization pulling in the same direction. In a season that is “Super Bowl or bust,” the back-to-back NFC North division champs are as primed as ever to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl that takes place in New Orleans.

Here are some early storylines Lions OnSI is following this week.

How Lions will handle rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels?

Washington’s rookie quarterback is the favorite to win NFL Rookie of the Year after an exceptional season. He completed 69 percent of his passes in the regular season and threw for 3,568 yards and 25 touchdown passes.

Daniels also is a dangerous rushing threat, as he rushed for 891 yards and six touchdowns. The Lions have struggled against mobile quarterbacks at points this season, as Buffalo’s Josh Allen gave them fits.

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The Lions are 2-1 this season against mobile quarterbacks. Allen handed them a loss in Week 15, but the defense was able to contain Kyler Murray in Week 3 and Anthony Richardson in Week 12. Allen rushed for 68 yards, while Richardson ran for 61 and Murray notched 45.

Though it will be the first time the Lions have faced off against Daniels, it won’t be the first time he’s seen Detroit rookie cornerback Terrion Arnold. The two players matched up against each other in the SEC for two seasons, with Arnold recording an interception for his Alabama team against Daniels and LSU.

Can Commanders stop Lions rushing attack?

The Lions’ offense has been one of the league’s best this season, and the run game has been a huge part of that success. Detroit’s offense stands to get a boost this week as well, as David Montgomery is expected to return for Saturday’s game.

Jahmyr Gibbs earned NFC Offensive Player of the Month honors in Montgomery’s absence and will still get plenty of touches. Against the 30th-ranked Commanders rushing defense, both Gibbs and Montgomery could stand to have big days.

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Will Aaron Glenn blitz at a high rate still?

With all the injuries to Detroit’s defense, the game plan for defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn has involved plenty of blitzing. Against the Vikings in Week 18, the defense utilized a number of different blitz packages to get after Sam Darnold.

Daniels has had plenty of success against the blitz, posting an ESPN QBR of 90.3 which ranked third in the league. If the Lions are not disciplined in their rush lanes, then they will also risk giving up long scrambles as Daniels can evade defenders.

The rookie passer has proven his abilities to handle blitzes, so whether or not Aaron Glenn continues to do so could be a deciding factor in Saturday’s game.

Lions injuries to monitor

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The Lions, like most weeks, have some injuries to monitor heading into the Divisional Round. Both cornerback Terrion Arnold and offensive lineman Kevin Zeitler suffered injuries in Week 18, and the bye week gave them an extra week to recover.

Arnold has been reported as day-to-day with a foot injury, while Zeitler was given an optimistic prognosis by Campbell last week. Things didn’t sound as good for defensive lineman Pat O’Connor.

We should learn more about the availability of all these players on Monday, as Dan Campbell is scheduled to speak with the media.

Odds: Lions Are 8.5-Point Favorite Against Commanders

Commanders have familiar faces on their staff

Part of the reason the Commanders had success this season is the staff Quinn assembled.

Offensive coordinator Kilff Kingsbury is a respected play-caller and will again see his name surface for available head coaching jobs.

Former Lions quarterback David Blough, who reportedly aided in the game-winning touchdown call against the Eagles, is currently serving as the Commanders assistant quarterbacks coach.

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Former Lions offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn was eventually demoted by Campbell before being let go.

Lance Newmark is now in his first season as assistant general manager of the Commanders.

Newmark joined the Commanders with nearly three decades of NFL experience, including 26 seasons with the Detroit Lions. In Detroit, he most recently served as the senior director of player personnel.





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BIZ BUZZ: Antonios go to Washington

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BIZ BUZZ: Antonios go to Washington


Donald Trump is scheduled to be inaugurated—again—as the president of the United States on Jan. 20 in Washington.

Among those who will witness his return to power as the 47th president of the world’s largest economy are some of his old friends from the Philippines.

We’re talking about Century Properties Group founder and chair Jose EB Antonio and his wife, Hilda.

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Going with them is their third son, Jose Roberto, who had just been appointed managing director of the J. Antonio Group Inc. in charge of resort-related projects.

It may be recalled that the Trumps and the Antonios struck up a friendship decades ago in New York when Trump was more known as a property developer, just like the Antonios. Some of their children also went to business school together.

And then, the Antonios also brought the Trump brand into one of the office buildings in its Century City development in Makati City.

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But the elder Antonio will be there not just as a personal friend invited by the Trumps to attend the inauguration but also to represent President Marcos as his ambassador-at-large tasked with inviting more investments into the Philippines.

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With a friend in the White House, the Antonios are confident that more investments as well as visitors will flow toward the Philippines. —Tina Arceo-Dumlao

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Clark hits the Belle’s eye

In July 2024, Belle Corp. gave us a teaser about applying for a gaming license from “government regulators.”

Despite the rumor mill running wild that the gaming-focused investment firms of delisted subsidiary Premium Leisure Corp. had plans to conquer Clark, Belle opted to keep quiet.

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Nearly half a year later, Belle hailed Clark as “the next gaming and tourism hub” and confirmed that they had, indeed, applied for a gaming license specifically to develop an integrated resort in the former American air base.

Belle president and CEO Armin Raquel Santos likewise expressed optimism on his company’s growth prospects, “and bullish on the Philippine gaming market and its resilience despite industry headwinds.”

”Belle, through its gaming subsidiaries, continues to explore and pursue related ventures and high-growth opportunities in the gaming space that will enhance shareholder value while delivering its commitments to all stakeholders,” the company quoted Santos as saying.

Though much still remains unsaid about Belle’s plans for Clark, it is clear that the gaming industry is still attractive despite some weakness and hiccups—Bloomberry Corp.’s earnings, for instance, and Davao-based businessman Dennis Uy’s long-stalled Cebu casino project.

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Let’s see if Belle will go against the odds. —Meg J. Adonis

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What Washington State’s head coach said after Gonzaga game

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What Washington State’s head coach said after Gonzaga game


Washington State men’s basketball head coach David Riley could point to a few factors that led to Gonzaga pulling away from the Cougars during the second half of Saturday night’s showdown at the McCarthey Athletic Center.

For starters, the Bulldogs’ 15-5 scoring run to start the second half certainly didn’t help the Cougs’ cause. Neither did Ryan Nembhard, who came out of the halftime break even more refreshed after sitting on the bench for the final 9:34 of the first half due to foul trouble. Turnovers and miscues on the defensive end of the floor also started to pile up for WSU, which led by six points in the first half only to trail by three at the break and fall behind by 21 in the second half while the Zags nailed 10 3-pointers and scored 20 points off 16 turnovers.

Consider Saturday night, then, a perfect storm for the Bulldogs (14-4, 5-0 WCC). Led by Graham Ike’s 21 points, Gonzaga pulled away for an 88-75 victory over its in-state rival in a thriller from the Kennel.

Here’s what Riley had to say after the game.

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On what changed for WSU in the second half:

“It was a hard-fought game, and I feel like we had it slip away from us early in that second half where we didn’t stay connected as much, and I personally didn’t do a good enough job of having us ready for the fight. They got some 50-50 balls. They got a couple offensive rebounds, just some toughness plays that second half that hurt us. And that comes down to, we have game plan stuff, we’re gonna have X’s and O’s, we’re gonna have great plays from different players and bad plays from different players, but that fight for 40 minutes, I think, was the difference, and they came out with a little more fire than us.”

On Ryan Nembhard’s impact in the second half after sitting most of the first half:

“He did a good job with their pace. I think he gets them up the floor really well. I felt like it was a lot of factors that second half, and he played a part in that and started isolating some of our bigs when we made a couple of adjustments. [Nembhard is a] good player.”

On WSU’s defensive breakdowns that led to 10 3-pointers for Gonzaga:

“A couple of execution errors. I think one of them we didn’t have a ball screen right, one of them we didn’t order our post defense right. Kind of going into the half that was our thing, when things get tough, or they throw in a 25-second possession, we got to execute all 30 seconds of the shot clock. And I think it was more just cover stuff. We didn’t have that many space cadet errors. I think it was more just kind of one guy doing something that wasn’t exactly right in coverage.”

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