Generation Land: Descendants Fight to Reclaim Family Properties Seized Decades Ago

Black families are seeking the return of land that was taken from them through government seizures, particularly in the South.
Descendants are searching for aging deeds and scouring public records to try to prove past ownership of properties that are now the sites of businesses, college dormitories, and other developments.
Families are asking for the land or to be paid current market value, and some are asking for acknowledgment of the harm done as a way to return their history to public memory.
The loss of property stripped by deceit, violence, or using eminent domain was often racially motivated and invoked disproportionately in minority and poor communities.
Cases face a mountain of obstacles, from the passage of time to gaps in public records, but some families are making progress with the help of organizations like Where Is My Land.