From the Bushes' New Bushes Near Preston Hollow, a History Lesson

By Robert Wilonsky Mon., Dec. 8 2008 at 10:46 AM

Categories: Politics

Two over-the-weekend follows to last week's news concerning George and Laura Bush's impending move to 10141 Daria Place. One comes from former Observer-er Ann Zimmerman, who gave Wall Street Journal readers a peek at the soon-to-be-ex-president's neighborhood, where not all the neighbors are happy about Bush's new address. Says one, "I am afraid with all the negative press the president has been getting, the whole neighborhood is going to be a target."

Too late, as on Friday night, KTVT-Channel 11 reported that from 1956 till 2000, the James Meaders Estates subdivision had a neighborhood association covenant that said the area's land "shall be used and occupied by white persons only except these covenants shall not prevent occupancy by domestic servants of a different race or nationality in the employ of a tenant." That history lesson -- concerning these illegal and unenforceable documents, as several Friends have asked me to point out -- hasn't been making the rounds at all. Though, maybe that's what Schutze was referring to Friday. --Robert Wilonsky

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The Bushes belong in Texas-- and in a neighborhood that was contractually segregated until 2000--perfect. Preston Hollow looks very hollow and the hollow man will fit right in.
Its amazing that when the truth is revealed about racism in our culture, certain of us can always excuse it. When I think about all of the noise and complaints that have been made about homeowner associations that people would want us to believe that an entry like (no non whites can own property here) would not raise an eyebrow. Of course such a statement in a document violates civil rights laws, but the question is why was it still in the covenant until 2000. How has such a statement in a association been illegal, but no one thought that it was enough of a problem to challenge it until 2000. The only people who would have had access and knowledge was the good whites who wanted to keep it that way.
Toots- I didn't complain about the origin of the story, or even about anyone "perpetuating" the story. My complaint was about people OUTSIDE of Dallas and Texas bitching about what a terrible stain on Dallas, and Texas, that Bush living here will be for all of us poor idiots, my point being they don't live here so they can STFU. Really, do you ever read anything at all? I am not alone in that I tend to get a little defensive when people from outside of here complain about how terrible things must be for us all. Well, 6 million people in DWF happily live here and the semi-presence of one man and his wife in a tiny hamlet in North Dallas isn't going to cause trains to suddenly fly off their tracks, frogs to drop out of the clear blue sky, or people to break out into mass hysterics. Toots, after Bush moves in, you too will still get out of bed every day and go to work, regardless of his presence. Please, you people give the man way more credit than he deserves, I'm beginning to think that you and your, uh, ilk, have secret crashes on the man the way you're all so obsessed. Oh and, what Suburban Idiot said.
And talk about a damned if you do, damned if you don't situation. In 2000, the story was all about how this neighborhood hadn't gone to the trouble to remove the unenforceable restriction. So they went and got the restriction removed in 2000, so now the story is all about how the neighborhood didn't allow non-whites until 2000.
It's articles like that one in the Daily News that show why the press is so often distrusted. The story implies that the restriction could've been enforced up until 2000, implying that the reason it was left in until then was to continue to prevent non-whites from moving into the neighborhood, while the real reason those things don't get removed is because they've been meaningless for decades and it can be a pain in the ass to remove them (and, I would venture to bet that many homeowners don't even realize they have such restrictions on their homes, so they wouldn't know to go try and get them removed). Mention of the Fair Housing Act of 1968 isn't mentioned at all. This Daily News story is a story written in a specific way in an effort to play "gotcha" journalism against an unpopular president rather than an honest attempt to inform and educate the populace.
Wuh-oh. http://tinyurl.com/6fvkep
"Cp, you are the one bitching. You are blaming people "outside of Texas" perpetrating the story when it was a LOCAL news source that did it. You crack me up" The local news did the story. The bloggers and whatnot are the ones going crazy and misrepresenting the story and saying that Dallas is a bad place because Bush is coming back here. Yes, the original story came from CBS11, but the tons o' hate is not from the story itself, but from the reactions of the story being posted by people outside of Dallas. For example, the CBS11 story didn't say that the neighborhood didn't allow African-Americans until 2000. It said there was an unenforceable racial covenant until 2000. Huffington Post said the neighborhood didn't allow African-Americans until 2000. That's the issue - the distortion of the truth to make Bush and Dallas appear worse than it is. Sure, the story itself was probably not newsworthy, either, but it was, at least, an accurate story without the Dallas-bashing that other outlets have used to story to partake in.
Cp, you are the one bitching. You are blaming people "outside of Texas" perpetrating the story when it was a LOCAL news source that did it. You crack me up
Uh, cp, we don't want W out here in Garland. We're busy trying to improve our town!
Anonymous- Sooo... if those idiots at CBS think Bush is such a terrible stain on this city, then they can feel free to move on out to the great city of Garland. Or Irving. Or Frisco. Or hell, they can move on down I-35 to the greatest town in Texas, Austin, and see how they like their costs of living there. Take a pick, I don't care. Just quit bitching already, it's not going to be any worse for Dallas than, oh I dunno, LBJ was for Gillespie County. Guess what's going to happen in Dallas, Texas in February no matter what? The sun will still come up.
Gravypan says: Anon, It would be analogous to a right wing nutjob smearing the entire county as immoral because it dared to elect a woman sheriff who just also happens to be a lesbian. _________________________________________________________ The part of the County who voted for that Lesbian Sheriff didn't live in "the Bubble". ..........and again, it was a local tv station that started this so I find it kind of hard to blame the national media.
Anon, I think CP's point still stands. Sure, CBS 11 carried the water with this story. That doesn't change the fact that the moonbats over at HuffPo are trying to stain our city are asshats of the highest order. It would be analogous to a right wing nutjob smearing the entire county as immoral because it dared to elect a woman sheriff who just also happens to be a lesbian.
cp says: I'm not defending Bush but, if these idiot bloggers don't live here, and if they think it's such a terrible stain on this great state, then they can feel free to stay the hell out. -------------------------------------------- Ah CP, it was a local station from Dallas, a city in Texas that brought the story national attention. Amateur mistake, buddy.
Jack- People are bagging on Texas and Dallas in particular because they are idiots and can't think of anything else clever to write about. Yes, the country all knew that Bush "came from" Dallas in the first place. He was the Governor of Texas before 2000, and even people who didn't vote for him knew that. And yet, in 2000 up until this campaign season it seems, the Texas hating was not nearly as vitriolic as it is now, it's like at an all-time high. Where the hell did these people think he was going to go? I'm not defending Bush but, if these idiot bloggers don't live here, and if they think it's such a terrible stain on this great state, then they can feel free to stay the hell out. Unlike GW, I AM a Texan (7th generation) and there are many wonderful and unique aspects about Texas than one president. And believe me, history will be much kinder- look at all the monuments to LBJ, and wasn't he vilified for getting and keeping us in another unpopular war?
At least the world can now be dispelled from the notion that Dallas has no trees...
I'm sure the Bushes specifically sought out a neighborhood that used to have a race-based covenant up until 8 years ago because they're evil and racist and all that....
I don't see race baiting. I think it even goes beyond Bush bashing, which I agree we must get beyond in order to move forward. However, I don't think he should be let off the hook for anything illegal that he might have been involved with. We didn't let BC get away with that BJ. I see this more as a stain on our city. If you read the responses at TPM/HuffPo/C&L/ Think Progress, you will see there is a lot of Texas bashing going on now...specific Dallas. I wish that people could separate our city from Bush/Cheney and realize that we have some really cool people, art, theatre, and an amazing film/video community. The comments for the most part are that we, Texans, are getting what we deserve in the return of Bush. In my younger international travel days, I always heard..oh Dallas, where Kennedy was shot....then oh the series Dallas, and now Bush. I hope people realize that some Dallasites do lie between a PeterK and a Jack E. Jett. Dallas is home to the world's only singing psychic, Fran Baskerville. I heard that the Bush's will use the extra land to create a smaller version of Guantanamo Bay that backs up to Payless Shoes. I understand they are going to call it Payless Gitmo.....thank you very much, I will be here all year.
Race is an issue. Arguably, race is *the central* issue in our society. It is a scab that every one of us should pick at daily until it is obvious that anyone ignoring it has their head in the sand. If we do not, the powers that be will continue to use it to keep us fighting with each other, instead of kicking their asses to the curb, which is what we should be doing.
I do want to make one thing perfectly clear: I didn't post to "race bait," but to mention that Channel 11 had run a piece that has since been picked up nationally -- especially by Huffington Post, which is still featuring the piece on its front page beneath the headline "UPDATE: Bush's New Neighborhood Barred Non-Whites Until 2000."
This covenant argument is at best specious; actually it reveals the prejudice against Bush and Republicans by the media (if you ask me). Anybody who knows anything about Real Estate knows that that was a common thing - for God's sake we had schools listed in the phone book up until about 1968 as "White" and "Colored". The only place this is still de facto is the HPISD, which has done everything possible to remain all-white. But they never seem to get much criticism for that. Give the Bushes credit for sending their kids to a DISD school and NOT moving into the antebellum, anachronistic, apartheid HPISD.
What, race baiting on Unfair Park?
"I thought these covenants were outlawed in the 40's." I had posted a long exposition about these covenants earlier but it has been held up waiting for approval (supposedly) anyway Slate back in 1999 brought up the topic "George W. Bush bought a house in 1988 that came with a deed restricting its use to �white persons only, excluding bona fide servants of any race.� Matt Drudge reported this yesterday and the Texas governor's office confirmed it today. Bush sold the house in 1995. Is this a scandal?" http://www.slate.com/id/1003204/ Snopes even debunked an internets email item about it http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/outrage/bush.asp and to answer JJ's ? yes the Supremes took on a case dealing with the covenants Shelley v. Kraemer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shelley_v._Kraemer Lakewooder I very well aware that many of the folks who post comments here are factually challenged
When the Bushes sold their Dallas home to move into the Governor's mansion, the race covenants issues came up. Not sure why it was an issue then, other than to shine a light on the shameful history of a lot of neighborhoods in the nation (and of the Federal Government since the FHA once required racial covenants). I certainly don't understand the "they're moving into a neighborhood that nearly a decade ago still had a restrictive but unenforceable covenant that no one had gone to the trouble to get removed" being an issue now. I mean, of all the things to give GWB grief about, this seems like a silly one.
I agree that this story is minor when you look at it in the overall legacy of a George W. Bush. I thought these covenants were outlawed in the 40's. It is eye opening to think that someone would write this even in 1956...and for only 3 bucks. Here is the convenant btw; http://llnw.static.cbslocal.com/station/ktvt/docs/2008/december/meaders_estates_covenant.pdf It makes the fact that Obama is our new President that much more special.
The old neighborhood covenants were racist and all, but they were so common that it really has nothing to do with this story. I'm just impressed that your linked WSJ story interviewed the village cobbler!
Peterk & Student of History, in case you haven't noticed, you're dealing with people that are politically influenced by Kanye West.
This whole 'controversy' reeks of stupid.
My my. Even in politically liberal Seattle WA has restrictive covenants "The language of segregation still haunts Seattle. It lurks in the deeds of tens of thousands of homeowners living in neighborhoods outside of the Central Area and the International District. Look deep in the fine print. Many Queen Anne residents, for instance, have this clause in their deeds: "No person or persons of Asiatic, African or Negro blood, lineage, or extraction shall be permitted to occupy a portion of said property."" http://depts.washington.edu/civilr/covenants.htm
Neighborhood association covenant from 1956? My home was built in 1955, I wonder if it has the same terms. How many of you have seen your original neighborhood association docs? How would you get a copy?
Oh come on! This is 2008......not 2000. We have grown and changed a lot in the last 8 years. I mean, there is no such thing as racism. All this is just the Liberal Media trying to bring up race again. Besides, I'm sure there will be blacks living in the area.......you know, like Secret Service, the maids, the cooks....... <sarcasm OFF> Yes Kanye was and is right. But he is no Elvis and will never be.
Guess "The Bubble" wasnt a big fan of "The Brutha" back in the day. Kanye 2012!
Kanye was right!
This type of covenant was common when most of the neighborhoods in and around the DFW area were developed. The abstracts for a high percentage of the residential properties around the metroplex have this very same ridiculous and completely unenforceable restriction. This is an artifact of previous societal attitudes regarding how to develop residential real estate, not a statement on the attitudes of current buyers and sellers of that same real estate. There's plenty to pick on regarding Geo. W. (and future students of history will have a fine time with that!) but this isn't one of them.