Newly emancipated slaves were supposed to receive 40 acres and a mule as reparations.
Anyone with a little bit of knowledge knows that African-Americans got screwed out of their reparations, which would have allegedly given 40 acres and a mule to every emancipated slave family.
In fact, instead of African-American slaves receiving reparations, America instead gave White slaveowners reparations to help ease their transition into having paid employees.
Well, Faheem Muhammad, 35, an African-American father in Los Angeles decided to give acres of land to his son, Faheem Ra’id Muhammad, on his 13th birthday, a gift that will ensure generational wealth for their descendants instead of a gift that depreciates as soon as purchased.
The land that Muhammad gave his son is in Boulevard, Calif., which is on the border between Mexico and the United States.
Muhammad said, “After slavery, of course, we were supposed to get 40 acres and a mule. We’re not crying about the fact that somebody didn’t give us what they promised. If this is something that we desire to have, we go and make it happen.”
According to “Good Morning America” reporter Tesfaye Negussie, “Muhammad said he wanted to instill the principles of self-sustainability into his son, whose birthday was March 16, while showing the importance of land ownership. Real estate investment is one of the top five ways to create generational wealth in America according to Forbes.”
The younger Muhammad said, “We don’t really have that much. Like in certain neighborhoods, we have no ownership of our homes.”
“Little Faheem” as he is affectionately called added, “It would just be better to learn how to deal with that kind of stuff over real estate, land ownership and home ownership.”
Negussie of “Good Morning America” added, “Muhammad, the former head of security for music icon Michael Jackson, is the co-founder and chief information officer of the OASIS investment group, a real estate development company that focuses on transforming and uplifting low-income and underserved communities, according to Muhammad. He said the 40 acres he gave his son was part of 198 acres of land he bought in 2021.”
According to The African American Encyclopedia, the term 40 acres and a mule “Refers to property given to settlers. While undocumented, this slogan probably originated in 1865. On January 16, William T. Sherman issued Special Field Order No. 15 to establish a coastal reservation for freed slaves. Under the order, each family was to receive forty acres of land. Later, Sherman agreed to loan army mules to help these settlers till the soil. The slogan was also used by advocates of additional land distribution plans.”
Unfortunately, African-Americans never got those 40 acres and a mule after slavery.
Nonetheless, White immigrants did receive free land out West from the government when they arrived in America.
For years, African-American leaders have preached the value of spending money on land and real estate to improve conditions for the next generations of the community.
Racism is something that has negatively impacted the African-American community since 1619.
Without power, racism does not have the same impact.
Much of the White economic powerbase comes from wealth generated from land.
Unfortunately, the African-American community has a history of having land stolen and property destroyed by their White counterparts.
Therefore, many modern African-Americans have preached to their descendants the importance of keeping land within their family and purchasing more land to build wealth for the community.
With more wealth in the African-American community, the community presumably will be less susceptible to racism from those in the White community who might want to abuse their power.
According to WealthandFinance-News.com, “Although many people have a picture in their heads about what generational wealth is, there is a much broader definition than you might expect. You don’t need to be wealthy to pass down generational wealth, as the term refers to any assets, property, money, or investments that you can pass down to your children or other family members. Therefore, owning a home of any kind can be considered generational wealth if you keep it within the family.
“One of the ways that owning property can help you accrue generational wealth is through saving money on the expenses of living long term. Even though owning a home comes with its own expenses, such as upkeep and maintenance in order to keep it in shape, owning property is an investment, as opposed to renting, which is an equation in which you never see your money again. Although renting is right for some people, owning property ensures that you maintain at least some capital on your investment…
“By renting out a unit on your property or even having a designated rental property, you can use it to accumulate generational wealth in addition to the generational wealth of owning the property itself.”
Muhammad said that buying his son the land gave him an opportunity to teach him about land value and real estate.
Little Faheem already knows what he wants to do with his 40 acres, planning to open it up as a camping site.
The 13-year-old said, “You could build, like, ATVs around the whole thing. Build a zipline from the mountains.”
His father sees the entire 196-acre space as a way for his family to escape the hustle and bustle of city life.
Muhammad said, “We see clear space, where we can uninterruptedly enjoy nature, especially growing up in congested L.A. When we are out here, it’s totally different.”
Maybe those who are able will see the Muhammads’ story and begin thinking differently on what they gift the next generation with.
