Community Members

“Going through the process of renouncing the racial covenant on our home has been a very reflective experience. It’s made me think about the history of this community and how the racial covenants have kept this area predominantly white for decades. Renouncing the racial covenant on your home is a truly personal choice and one that should be made after thoughtful consideration of what this means to you, your family and your community. I am very thankful to Just Deeds for helping us through this process. We could not have renounced the racial covenant without them.”

“We decided the best way to acknowledge the institutional racism in our community was to collectively renounce the racial covenants. Once we started looking into how to renounce the covenants, we realized that we needed help. Just Deeds took an unfriendly and convoluted process and made it simple for us to renounce the racial covenants. Our neighborhood group is still meeting and brainstorming follow-up actions that neighbors may take to seek reparations for communities still afflicted by the covenants’ legacy. We hope our work inspires others to look deeper into how our community was shaped by racism and pursue ways to change its path.”

“A huge thanks to the City of Golden Valley and to Mike Freiberg for all their hard work and effort in removing the racially restrictive covenant from our deed. I was shocked to discover last year that this language was ever part of my title and even more saddened to hear that its inclusion was not banned until 1968. It has been an eye-opening experience to learn how these types of covenants have impacted and shaped the racial landscape of cities today. I admit that I still have much to learn in the way of institutional racism, but am happy to be taking a step in the right direction by denouncing this discriminatory language. I would highly encourage all my friends and neighbors to do the same.”

“I serve in the legislature and supported the legislation allowing homeowners to denounce racist restrictive covenants on the deeds of their homes. Volunteering to help denounce these racist artifacts of our past - which still have a pernicious impact in the present - has been satisfying. It's also been a good way to see the real-world impact of legislation we passed. I'd encourage other attorneys to help out with this important work!”

“Mapping Prejudice and Just Deeds allow us to discover and rediscover what 'We The People,' our developers, Realtors, and even our cities, conspired to do in the past to segregate housing in the Twin Cities. Denouncing racist, restrictive covenants on our own title history is the first step in acknowledging this indefensible part of our local history. You and I can't stop by admitting the obviously racist policies that set up our systems. We have to examine what other racist policies our society created and still perpetuate. We must continue to promote antiracist policies every year, every month and every day. Please support Just Deeds in whatever way feels right to you! You will be showing other people, government entities and businesses that we can all work together to create antiracist housing and a more just society. Thank you so much for whatever you decide to do!”

“The Just Deeds project highlights the important work that cities can do to help rectify the history of discrimination and is one step cities and individuals can take in the important work of building a more inclusive community. I was a member of the Golden Valley Human Rights Commission that helped launched the work of Just Deeds and have continued to support it as a City Council Member. The project has helped us to understand the impacts of racial covenants, to educate and inform residents of Golden Valley, and to help them remove these covenants from their deeds. Seeing this work progress over the last year and the great interest that Golden Valley's residents have for this program displays our city's commitment and vision to be an even more welcoming and inclusive city.”

“With the help of the really good people of Just Deeds we started the process of discharging the racial covenant on our house title. I'll admit there is a bit of a cobblers children having no shoes aspect to this as the ability to discharge racially restrictive covenants is only possible because of legislation I authored in 2019. Racially restrictive covenants vary some in language and scope but always prohibit African-Americans from buying or living in homes with these restrictions on the underlying titles. They're offensive and also no longer legally valid thanks to the Fair Housing Act of 1968. But they remain on about 8000 titles across Minneapolis. Going through the process to discharge that covenant-to reject it on your property title - is a way that white homeowners can confront the racist legacy underneath their feet. It's a legacy that continues to this day as recent research by the good people of The Mapping Prejudice Project has found that homes with restrictive covenants on them have higher property values that homes that did not. The folks at Just Deeds are all volunteer lawyers, legal workers, and others who help homeowners understand their title, prepare the paperwork, and help people understand the significance of the covenant on their property title. The folks at Free the Deeds have turned this into a city-wide public art project that raises funds for an African-American down payment assistance fund at the City of Lakes Community Land Trust, adding a form of reparations' to discharging your covenant. Often you author a bill, see it through the process, and see it signed into law by the Governor. Rarely do you get to see community members embrace that legislation, bring their professional skills to bare, and engage the community in what is now possible. I couldn't be more proud. Often you author a bill, work it through the process, and see it signed into law by the Governor. Rarely do you get to see community members embrace that legislation, bring their professional skills to bare, and engage our neighbors, and make what is possible real.”

“Over the past year, learning about the history of racially restrictive covenants through groups like Mapping Prejudice and various real estate industry organizations has opened our eyes to the pervasiveness of housing discrimination in Minnesota. When we purchased a Golden Valley home this past year, we discovered our deed had a restrictive covenant. We didn't want the language removed, because we believe the history of these practices shouldn't be erased or forgotten, as understanding the past is crucial in understanding the present. However, we loved the idea of enlisting the help of Just Deeds to initiate the process of adding an addendum to renounce the language as a symbol of the inclusive values we live out in our home and family.”

“While the realtors of both my current home and prior home told me to "just ignore the bigoted language in the deed as it's unenforceable," I was still quite bothered by its presence. I was so glad to learn about the Just Deeds project and their efforts to address this documented bigotry.”