NOTE: Peter Richie is with the Robbinsdale Historial Society, not the Minnesota Historical Society.

The Robbinsdale Historical Society and local activists spoke to homeowners in Robbinsdale on Sunday afternoon about the racial covenants that could exist on their houses.

Maria Cisneros, Golden Valley city attorney, led the conversation at the historical society. She travels the state to educate people on the topic and inspire them to take action.

The racial restrictions are clauses that date back more than 100 years that prevented people who aren’t white from living on properties. They’re no longer enforced, but historians say some are still in place today.

Over a century ago, the first homes in Robbinsdale were built to create a community, but not everyone was invited.

“I think it’s important for us to recognize our history,” Robbinsdale resident Raymond Blackledge said. “Even if the history is painful, painful change has to happen. That’s the first step to get to know your history.”

Blackledge did his homework on his own home.

“We looked into it and found that our home did not have one, but many surrounding homes did have racial covenants attached to them,” Blackledge said. “It does harm you thinking that it still exists.”

Peter Richie, Robbinsdale Historical Society president, peeled through pages of Robbinsdale history to study racial covenants put in place in the 1900s.

“Once you start getting into the teens and ’20s, when a lot of Robbinsdale was built, almost every property’s got a racial covenant and these were put together by various real estate companies,” Richie said.

Since families of color were not allowed to purchase homes in suburban areas, University of Minnesota researchers said it’s one of the reasons why racial disparities in income, home ownership, education and health outcomes exist.

“Things have changed, but I think it’s important to acknowledge this history that there was a reason that things were the way they were,” Richie said.

History experts said these racial covenants exist in surrounding cities in Hennepin and Ramsey counties.

In 2016, U of M researchers used Hennepin County records to create the first-ever comprehensive visualizations of racial covenants in Hennepin County. Residents can search to see if their property has a restrictive covenant.

Homeowners are able to remove the racial covenant legally from their property deed. Follow this guide to get started.