In a recent episode of The Amber Ruffin Show, comedian and host Amber Ruffin shared a disturbing lesson in American history in which thriving Black communities were purposefully flooded or removed for lakes and parks. The trend, started in the early 1910s and lasting over several decades, was carried out through racial violence, intimidation, and discriminatory legal practices.
For example, Georgia’s infamous Lake Lanier was first up on Ruffin’s list of Black towns flooded for public projects, which was once the thriving Black town of Oscarville.