Nottoway, the largest remaining pre-Civil War plantation, burned to the ground last week, and videos of the blaze set Black social media users on fire in celebration. Enslaved Africans built the 64-room estate 160 years ago. Now, it's only ashes. Here's why we should rejoice.
John Hampden Randolph enslaved more than 150 Black people on this sugarcane farm. Although Nottoway Plantation had been a museum, a few decades ago it was, repackaged as a luxury resort boasting wedding packages, guest suites, and tennis courts. But the atrocities once committed there against our people cannot be rebranded as “Southern charm.”
It’s probably not a coincidence that Nottoway burned for 40 hours. Is it symbolic of the 40 acres and a mule that many of our ancestors were promised but never got? Maybe. Or perhaps its burning is a reminder that plantations aren't playgrounds to be used to profit off Black pain.
The Nottoway inferno feels more like justice than a tragedy. The owner? He's hopeful about rebuilding and committed to "not dwelling on past racial injustice." Their website has no mention of the horrific history of the land or even the names of the people enslaved there.
It'll never be ok to wed, relax, or vacation on the graves of our ancestors. This fire is a reminder that coloniality is still so deeply ingrained in this society that perhaps it's time to burn it all down.