Finders Keepers Losers Weepers Summary

Wealth Matters: Loss of Black Land Ownership

"Finders Keepers, Loser's Weepers." --Unknown

Introduction Finders keepers, losers weepers is a childhood adage that means whatever is found on the school playground can be kept. There is no principle of law that supports an individual is entitled to keep whatever is found, while the original owner bears the loss. The premise when something is lost by one individual and found by another has been expressed in various ways over the centuries. The law of lost and found is rooted in ancient Roman laws and the concept of finders keepers derived from the work of the second century jurist Gaius, who suggested that unowned property (res nullius) became “the property of the first taker.” The Roman

Contrary to the voluntary sales, Black landowners lost land due to partition and tax sales, foreclosures, intestate, property liens due to welfare recipients and eminent domain. Although black landownership rapidly declined through legal means, there is documented evidence that Black owned lands were also taken through violent techniques and adversely possessed. My thesis statement is “land ownership is the greatest source of acquired wealth but Black landowners did not acquire generational wealth because their land ownerships were sabotaged through legal means and violent techniques which prevented a loss of economic growth in the black communities." My research will explore how land ownership is considered the greatest source of acquire wealth and a vital asset to all communities followed by how legal means and racist techniques forced Black people to abandon their lands which were acquired and/or sold through adverse possession. Finally, I will defend my thesis statement by illustrating how the decline and/or denial of land ownership may be a crucial element in the economic development within the black

Unfortunately, the financial recession of the Great Depression resulted in the majority of the nation losing their personal property which included the loss of land. Documentations show at the start of the Depression, black farmers began to transfer their land to White landowners and Black farmers began to show a yearly loss of 350 thousand acres of land. Meanwhile, Old Age Insurance (Social Security) was established under the Roosevelt Administration but unfortunately did not include coverage for agricultural and domestic workers. Without social security benefits, retired or disabled citizens were unable to pass down savings to the next generation because any savings earned were more than likely spent on daily expenses. The lack of social security insurance required the second generation to care for and support indigent and/or elderly family members which diverted resources away from their savings and capital accumulation.

Loss of Land