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Tyler Perry buying new home for 93-year-old woman in land dispute with developers, reports say

Developers have Black families fighting to maintain property and history Jonesville Historic Gullah Neighborhood resident Josephine Wright stands between her home and an orange safety fence that boarders the 29-acre construction site, Tuesday, July 18, 2023, in Hilton Head Island, S.C. A Georgia-based developer's planned 147-unit short-term rental complex that broke ground last summer. (AP Photo/Stephen B. Morton) (Stephen B. Morton/AP)

ATLANTA — Atlanta media mogul, Tyler Perry, is reportedly stepping in to help a 93-year-old South Carolina woman who has been fighting developers from destroyer her home that has been in her family since before the Civil War.

Josephine Wright, from Hilton Head Island, said an investment company is trying to develop 27 acres of land around her property and has filed a lawsuit against her to get the land her home sits on.

Wright said the developers made offers to buy her land and when she turned them down, they started harassing her.

Earlier in the summer, Perry said he would help her fight.

“‘I’ve pretty much been a fighter all my life,’ said 93-year-old Josephine Wright. Well, that makes two of us. Ms. Wright, please tell [me] where to show up and what you need to help you fight,” Perry posted on his Instagram account in June.

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Now, TMZ is reporting that Perry is going to build Wright a 5-bedroom home to replace the one she’s living in with her grandkids once all the permits get squared away.

Since her story went public, several other celebrities have stepped up to help her fight the company.

NBA superstar Kyrie Irving has made two donations to Wright – one for $40,000 three months ago, and another for more than $24,000.

Snoop Dogg has also donated $10,000 to the cause.

According to one of the latest updates on Wright’s GoFundMe page, a tree fell on her home last month. Luckily, she was not home when it happened. The post did not say the extent of the damage.

In a post in August, Wright’s granddaughter Charise Graves said the town of Hilton Head is now on Wright’s side.

“The Town of Hilton Head, standing behind one of their own, has denied the ‘Development Company’s’ request to move on to the next phase of construction until this matter with Grandma Josephine is RESOLVED. So far, there has been no word from the development company,” Graves wrote. “Grandma Josephine is overwhelmed with gratitude from the support she’s received from all over the world.”

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