WIMBERLEY, Texas (KXAN) — You may want to take a close look at the legal documents you sign.
Some of them include racist language dating back decades. A Hays County couple is working to get rid of some of that language in the deed of their home.
It’s only possible now under a new Texas law.
Jenell and Angela Pham love living on the property they own in Wimberley. They’ve called it home since 2019. But there’s been one major thing they haven’t been able to shake: the words in their deed.
“The owners, their heirs or assigns, shall not sell or convey any part of sale premises to a person not of the Caucasian race and no residence lot shall beused by persons not of the Caucasian race except as domestic servants working for the family occupying the residence,” the deed reads.
“When you’re somebody not white living in this subdivision, it brings up fear and disgust,” Angela Pham said.
It’s a common deed practice implemented in the 1920s through the 1960s.
“I felt so disempowered to watch Angela’s reaction to that statement, and to feel emotionally, how it impacted her,” Jenell said.