HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — A 93-year-old woman is fighting to keep the home that has been in her family as far back as the Civil War.
Josephine Wright told WSAV-TV that developers are trying to force her to sell her land.
A lawsuit by Bailey Point Investment Group names Wright and the property’s co-owner and Wright’s former daughter-in-law, Delores Wright, WSAV said. Bailey Point is developing land right behind her home.
Wright refused to sell her land, so the company sued.
“What they did was serve me with improper papers. Which caused me to have to get an attorney that would cost a lot of money,” Wright told WTGS-TV. “However, they also claimed I encroached on their property that was next to mine.”
The investment company is trying to develop 27 acres of land around Wright’s property. Her granddaughter, Charise Graves, told WTGS that all her grandmother wants is some peace and quiet, and that the last year has been anything but.
“Unbeknownst to us, they just started tearing trees down, you know. Our house was shaking like it was an earthquake. They didn’t even have the decency to let us know that this was happening,” Graves said.
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Bailey Point contends Wright is blocking their progress. They filed a lawsuit saying parts of Wright’s home are on their property, and that they have the paperwork to prove it, among other issues, WSAV reported.
Wright told WSAV that she already paid to move a shed, which cost about $1,900 and got rid of a satellite dish. The developers say her porch is still on land they own.
Wright said the developers made offers to buy her land and she told WSAV that when she turned them down, they started harassing her.
“I guess they figured I would become so unnerved with the harassment that I would say, ‘Take it.’ But they don’t know me. I am here to fight for what I have,” Wright told the TV station.
Former state representative and civil rights attorney Bakari Sellers is now part of Wright’s legal team, the TV stations reported.
“When we have conversations about systemic injustices and the fact that Black folk are separated from their land, this is what we’re talking about. This doesn’t just affect one young lady. But this affects an entire family,” Sellers told WTGS. “Although this is about a Black lady owning her property, this isn’t really a Black and white issue. This is about a right and wrong issue.”
Wright has seven children, 40 grandchildren, 50 great-grandchildren, and 16 great-great-grandchildren. They all want to keep this historic property in the family, WTGS said.
“I want to just keep my property and them to leave me alone,” Wright told WSAV.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to help pay for Wright’s legal fees.
The TV stations reached out to Bailey Point for comment on this story, but so far neither has heard back.
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