Were you familiar with the concept of heir property before you read this book? What is your take on it?

The Department of Agriculture calls heir property the leading cause of Black land loss in the U.S. Were you familiar with the concept of heir property before you read this book? What is your take on it?

I didn't know about heir property, but I can see how problematic it could be if deeds were never transferred and suddenly there were many heirs owning shares. Very sad for people living on land that had been in the family for generations to be told that some distant shareholder was selling.

I was very unaware of heir property and after reading the book, explored the concept further. It did make sense in times when deeds were lost or even not filed at all. I have always wondered about eminent domain as well and how easy it is to take property away from people.

I was not familiar with the concept of heir property which seems to be a way for the rich, powerful, and educated to take what they want. We know how problematic settling estates can be, even with a will. Claiming legal title to property as an heir without a will is subject to all sorts of personal issues such as illegitimacy, divorce, dysfunctional sibling relationships, etc. I

I was not familiar with the concept of heir property. I found it very interesting to learn about and may research it further.

I hadn't heard of heir property before. It certainly destroys the concept of having clear title to a piece of land. It' hard to believe it would still exist. It makes it too easy for a distant relatives, who's had nothing to do with the land, to lay claim to it.

I didn't know one thing about heir property before reading this book. I found it to be a complex concept with some interesting run arounds with the law to take control of other's property behind their backs.

Yes, I knew a gentleman in Georgia who believed he deserved the property rights to a plot of thirty acres that he had lived on all of his life. Unfortunately, the courts did not rule in his favor, and a large corporation took over the land and bulldozed the house that had been there since before the Civil War. He was sent to a low-rent housing development, where he died a lonely, sad, old man.

I had never heard of heir property. This was so interesting, I am glad the author wrote about it. I totally understand how it developed and I hope that heir property becomes more known, so that there can be generational property transfer to the rightful people.

I was not aware of heir property before reading this novel (although I WAS aware of eminent domain). I'm no longer surprised at all of the 'legal' ways the government can remove property from the rightful owners. I've always found this concept interesting to think about though since land ownership (and home ownership) has always been so symbolic of the 'American Dream' and property ownership is the source of most middle class families' wealth. In this story particularly, property ownership is tied to this family's identity... the family as a whole and each member individually. I found this aspect of the story fascinating.

I was not familiar with the Torrens Act and I am glad to learn something new when I read. Sadly, it is one more story about how we took advantage and hurt black people in this country.

I was aware of heir property although I don't think I had used that exact terminology. I am also aware of how eminent domain can be used to disenfranchise people who are already on the losing end of public policies. Basically, this is what colonizing people did to First People/ Native People in North America when the colonizers "discovered" it.

I was not aware of this concept, but have read about this . It seems an extension of JIm Crow. But I don't think I learned much about it in this book .

I was not familiar with the term, heir property, prior to reading this book. It reminds me of family conflicts over property that has been verbally “promised” to individual family members but not documented in writing. I have acquaintances whose families have been estranged for years over their grandmother’s jewelry, china or other heirlooms. It is appalling to realize that the theft of one’s property can be legalized using the court system.

I had not heard of heir property prior to reading this book. It underscores the importance of making sure proper deeds and wills are prepared and filed.

I was not prior to reading this book. I did some research and was appalled to learn that black farmers owned 14% of the land in the early 1900’s and that by the end of the century they had been robbed of 90% of that land.

I was also very aware of eminent domain and the beach case in California. I had always assumed that if there was no will the closest relatives would inherit. the fact that there was no deed is very nasty loophole that has/is obviously being used to take advantage of people who could not afford the legal advice and time for the process of establishing legal ownership. The fact that an illiterate man can sign a legal document referring to an obscure law is terrible.
I am surprised that some type of Squatters Rights ownership does not apply - it does in many places around the world.

I was not familiar with heir property before reading this book, but am familiar with incidents of governmental bodies utilizing eminent domain as a means of acquiring desirable property. In both cases a more powerful body exerts its will over the less powerful. Black Americans suffer from power imbalances all the time-sometimes micro aggressions but in this case a macro aggression.
Interestingly in this novel CeCe could have avoided the confiscation of property if she had read her father's letter that included notice of the impending legal transaction. The author makes the point that people should pay attention to titles, writing wills and keeping property taxes current.

I was not previously familiar with heir property and was interested to learn more about the topic by reading this book. It most certainly seems to be a way the system was set up to work against underprivileged people and is wrong.

I was not familiar with the concept of heir property and I found it to be the most interesting part of the story. It’s truly amazing what we can learn by reading fiction.

I absolutely wasn't. It's existence doesn't surprise me. I think it's hard for many people to make sure all the legalities are in place to satisfy inheritance laws, but I imagine it's especially challenging for those who've been denied education and income. What did surprise me was how easy it is for land to be lost under heir property, and how MUCH land Black farmers in particular have lost in the past 100+ years or so.

I was not aware of the practice.

I had never heard of the practice of heir property and thought the issue was well described by the author. One of my favorite things about reading is learning about practices and struggles that other people face.

I had never heard of it before. It was both interesting and upsetting to find out that something like this is still a problem in this day and age.

I had never heard of it before, but just another thing in our history that try to keep certain people down.

I was vaguely aware of it. Even more reason it is important now to make out a will.

No, I had not heard of this. I think that injustice comes in so many forms that I've never heard, and I'm always surprised by my ignorance.

I had never heard of heir property before I read this book. It seems like a way of doing things that doesn't work out very well over time. You would think that more people who are in this situation would work to get clear title to their property and that the government knowing of the way heirs are taken advantage of would make it easier for that to happen.

I am glad to know that I am not the only one who did not know about heir property. I thought it was sadly lacking in this book to not give more information about this issue. The title seems misleading as well. What could have been saved "long after we are gone", the house, the family? Seems like this is an issue waiting for new laws and the lack of laws are meant to what-- rob black families of their legacies?? Is anything being actively done to change this?