Sapelo Island Residents Won a Major Vote, but Their Fight Continues

Sometimes, Josiah “Jazz” Watts can’t remember a time when he and other Gullah Geechee descendants weren’t fighting for their homeland.

It’s been four months since McIntosh County, Georgia, voters overwhelmingly rejected a zoning ordinance that could have resulted in higher taxes, attracted more developers, harmed local businesses, and led to Geechee displacement. The January referendum is the direct result of a yearslong battle between residents and county officials who passed an ordinance that would have allowed larger homes to be built in the historic Hogg Hammock, or Hogg Hummock, neighborhood on Sapelo Island.

Though the community secured a major victory at the polls, it isn’t the end of its struggle.

On May 12, the McIntosh County Board of Commissioners voted to extend and impose an additional 90-day moratorium on accepting building permit applications on Sapelo Island. It allows the board more time to create a new ordinance that residents hope would work in their favor. The uncertainty forces them to constantly be in “survival mode,” Watts said. Already, they’ve endured government neglect, property tax hikes, and white developers eyeing the land.

Watts — a resident, activist and multigenerational Gullah Geechee descendant — and others are determined to keep on keeping on because of the ones who came before them.

“When we talk about emancipation, we talk about it as if the people didn’t take part in their emancipation, but the people did. My ancestors did,” he said. “You don’t hear the stories about the ancestors that resisted, that fought, vehemently against slavery. Our faith, our belief, is what keeps us going.”

The moratorium extension comes a month after McIntosh County Judge F. Gates Peed dismissed a case challenging the original zoning ordinance, ruling in favor of the county. In 2023, the Southern Poverty Law Center filed the lawsuit on behalf of several Gullah Geechee residents, alleging the ordinance was unjust.

The residents do not plan to appeal the decision.

“A referendum provided a clear outlet for public input, the community was heard, and the law was ultimately repealed,” said Miriam Gutman, senior staff attorney at the SPLC. “It’s a powerful reminder that when people speak out, decision-makers must respond, and we are proud to have played even a small role in that outcome.”

The McIntosh County commissioners did not respond to Capital B’s request for comment except for District 2 Commissioner Chris Jarriel, who declined to be interviewed. Jarriel did say that the board is working with the community.

“There’s still an opportunity for them to do the right thing in putting forth an ordinance that protects, preserves, and sustains the descendant community on the island,” Watts said. “On the other side of this is that even with this ruling, they could still work with the Southern Poverty Law Center and the residents. In fact, if they do that, that will help to instill some sense of faith that they’re going to get this done.”

Rhonikki Williams says the Gullah Gechee community in Sapelo Island is “cautiously optimistic” as it fights to protect its land. (Malcolm Jackson)

Rhonikki Williams, a lifelong resident and descendant, said she believes the board is moving in the right direction by holding listening sessions to hear from the community regarding a new ordinance. However, the community, she says, is still “cautiously optimistic.”

“I feel like they have to work with us now. There is no backroom deals, nothing like that because we are watching and they know we are watching,” Williams said.

The biggest challenge in fighting back against government officials — beyond navigating the courts and attending board meetings — is it hinders the progress locals are trying to make to improve their daily lives, Williams said. There’s little support for the grassroots organizations on the island to sustain themselves.

“It sucks because we would much rather just figure out how to bring other descendants onto the island, how to boost eco-tourism, how to do these things to promote our culture and how to spread the word,” she said. “But every time we turn around, it’s another issue that we have to fight.”

These grassroots organizations support Sapelo Island residents and other Gullah Geechee communities: