A federal civil rights lawsuit filed Wednesday alleges that a real estate broker was denied the chance to buy property in an Arkansas development because of her Jewish heritage and her interracial family.
The legal action, brought on behalf of Michelle Walker, targets Return to the Land — a development organization whose leadership reportedly requires personal verification that all applicants are white before approval — along with its Ozarks chapter and five officials. The complaint alleges Return to the Land’s founders are “explicitly attempting to establish an all-white community.”
The filing characterizes Return to the Land as a white nationalist group operating in violation of federal and state housing and civil rights laws.
“Its founders believe that white people are genetically superior to other races, advance the view that Jewish people are engaged in a plot to eliminate the white race, and advocate for segregated white communities for the purpose of creating a separate all-white nation state that will help avoid ‘white genocide,’” the lawsuit said.
Historical housing discrimination through racial covenants in mortgages and leases, along with redlining practices that denied loans based on race, prevented Blacks and other minorities from purchasing or renting homes in certain neighborhoods for many years.
Walker, who works as a real estate broker in St. Louis, sought to purchase property last year in Ravenden, Arkansas, attracted by pricing below market rates. The town sits roughly 150 miles northeast of Little Rock, near the Missouri state border.
During the application process, Walker faced questioning about her family background, religious beliefs, and ancestry, the lawsuit states.
Walker identifies as white and attends a Christian church, with Jewish heritage through her mother’s lineage.
Legal representation for Walker includes attorneys from the Relman Colfax law firm, the Legal Defense Fund, and Legal Aid of Arkansas.
Return to the Land has not responded to requests for comment from The Associated Press regarding the lawsuit.
The organization’s website describes itself as a private membership group “for individuals and families with traditional views and common continental ancestry.” Beyond its Ozarks Regional Chapter spanning parts of Arkansas, Missouri and eastern Oklahoma, Return to the Land claims to operate chapters nationwide.
When reports emerged that Return to the Land was considering the Springfield, Missouri area for a whites-only development, Springfield’s city council declared in a Facebook statement last July that such “divisive and discriminatory vision” had no place in their city or anywhere else.
Pennsylvania’s state House approved legislation in April by a narrow 101-100 margin to prevent the establishment of whites-only housing developments. House Bill 2103 emerged following Return to the Land’s reported plans to expand operations into Pennsylvania and additional states.
The Pennsylvania Senate is currently reviewing the proposed legislation.
