This is the first story in Capital B’s “Gatekeepers of the Land,” a multipart series that explores a small but powerful county committee system and its role in diminishing Black political power and resources for Black farmers. This project is a result of the Investigative Reporting and Editors Chauncey Bailey Journalist of Color Fellowship. It is […]
Aallyah Wright
Aallyah Wright is the rural issues reporter for Capital B. From farmers to land fights to health care and jobs, her reporting explores the issues that matter most while celebrating culture and joy.
Follow her on Bluesky @aallyahpatrice.bsky.social and Instagram @journalistaallyah.
Posted inCourts, Culture, History
S.C. Court Victory Grants Gullah Geechee Temporary Access to Blocked Cemetery
Julia Scott is disappointed. Despite a judge granting her and other Gullah Geechee residents in St. Helena Island, South Carolina, access to the centuries-old Big House Cemetery, they must give the property owners — who put up a gate to block the entrance — written notice first. “It’s a start, but I am not pleased […]
Posted inCulture, Economy, Employment, Equity, History, Politics & Policy, Rural Issues
The Mississippi Delta Is a Testing Ground for the Nation
The majority-Black Mississippi Delta region is shrouded in both magic and myth for many outsiders, writer and essayist W. Ralph Eubanks says. Dubbed the “Most Southern Place on Earth,” the Delta’s rich culture and blues music brings millions of tourists to the region every year. The Magnolia State broke records in 2024 when about 44 […]
Posted inCourts, Economic Development, Eminent Domain, History, Politics & Policy, Rural Issues
Georgia Is Letting a Railroad Seize Land a Black Family Has Owned For 100 Years
SPARTA, Ga. — In 1850, Andrew Benjamin Tarbutton enslaved 25 people in central Georgia. A year later, he purchased more than a dozen additional people off the docks in Savannah and marched them toward his home, setting the foundation for his family’s generational wealth. Four generations later, a railroad company owned by one of his […]
Posted inHistory, Politics & Policy
100 Years After a Black Family Was Forced Out, a Descendant Sues a California City
Sidney and Iréne Dearing, along with their two small children, faced lynching and bomb threats after they settled in a “sundown town” in California in 1924. As the first Black homeowners in Piedmont, a wealthy white suburb of Oakland, they endured a racial terror campaign that included a mob of 500 people showing up on […]
Posted inElections, Politics & Policy, Rural Issues
The Alabama Town That Blocked Its First Black Mayor Now Has Another
Read Capital B’s continuous coverage on Newbern, Alabama, and the first Black mayor’s fight to serve. The rural Alabama town that once ousted its first Black leader has now appointed its second Black mayor and first woman to hold the office. The historic appointment of Barbara Patrick in Newbern on Feb. 1 comes after Patrick […]
Posted inBlack Farmers, Rural Issues
Black Colorado Ranchers Prevail After Attempts to Run Them Off the Land
Courtney “CW” and Nicole Mallery believed they had moved to greener pastures after being displaced by a hurricane. They moved to Yoder, Colorado, an unincorporated town where they could nurture their animals and grow food on their 1,000-acre ranch. What the married couple say they’ve encountered, however, nearly cost them their lives. They faced being […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment, Community
How ‘Sinners’ Keeps Supporting Clarksdale, the Community That Inspired The Film
When Tyler Yarbrough penned an open letter inviting the Sinners film cast and crew to the birthplace of the blues, he sensed that something magical or culturally significant would unfold. However, he didn’t anticipate that, nine months later, people would still feel inspired to contribute to their movement to reinvigorate the culture and heritage of […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment, Culture
A Black Film Just Made Oscars History With a Record 16 Nominations
Check out Capital B’s Beyond ‘Sinners’: The Stories of Clarksdale, Mississippi, a yearlong project highlighting Black residents reclaiming power and ownership in an area where Blues tourism and development have long excluded them. A decade after the #OscarsSoWhite movement, a Black director’s film has gotten the most nominations ever in the Academy Award’s nearly 100-year […]
Posted inElections, Politics & Policy, Rural Issues, Voting
Sapelo Island’s Gullah Geechee Community Fights Back and Wins
In a win for Gullah Geechee residents on Georgia’s sea islands, voters this week rejected an ordinance that doubled the allowed square footage for homes in Sapelo Island’s Hog Hammock district. Many Black residents feared the change would lead to higher property taxes, gentrification, and displacement. Unofficial results on Tuesday showed 19% of 10,000 registered […]