Mitiblende The Story of an American Family (eBook)

Mitiblende reads like the story of a Black American family in its quest to sell or partition an heir's property legacy of 56 acres of undivided interest. The term Mitiblende (translation, make the brains grow smarter) was coined by Robert M. Pittman. The late Mr. Pittman was Joe Harris' uncle. Joe Harris is the novel's protagonist. The storyline is cast around property located in a small town rural Texas setting. Heirs property essentially represents generational wealth that has been transferred to multiple family members by inheritance, usually without a will. The deed to the property was dated August 2, 1898, from Sallie Simpson to Rosie Burse Edwards (Joe Harris' great-grandmother). The granting of the land was instead of monetary compensation and represented repayment for services rendered by Joe Harris' ancestors.Historically, when a court ordered the partition of heirs' property by sale, the land was sold to the public. This typically happens by a mandatory sale at an auction. Often, property owners lost their family legacies and generally received a small percentage of what the land was worth - far below the property's fair market value. This has resulted in a tremendous amount of land loss among African Americans (disproportionately) and other people of color in the United States.In many ways, the Mitiblende story can be characterized as semi-autobiographical. Several aspects of Joe Harris' childhood to adolescence to adulthood passage (such as names, places, and other identifying descriptors) may be fictional. However, many aspects of the journey, such as his efforts in structuring the Harris Family Tree, are factual and historical. Intertwined between the story is an evolving collage of clues presented in the form of letters, emails, teleconferences, and dialogue. For example, a letter written in 1986 by Joe Harris' Aunt Maude (the late Maudell Williams) provided clues that highlighted issues such as (a) the landlocked perimeter and (b) the lack of easement rights. In addition, Joe Harris' goal was to assist in charting a strategy to address a problem that had been lingering for decades. That problem was a tendency on the part of bordering neighbors to lay claim to the property via means such as adverse possession. When it came to implementing a course of action to address these issues Joe Harris soon found that not all clues had the same impact.