John Emmeus Davis is partner and cofounder of Burlington Associates in Community Development, a national consulting cooperative specializing in the development of policies and programs promoting permanently affordable, owner-occupied housing. He was a visiting fellow at the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy from 2007 to 2009.
<p>Forty years ago, the Civil Rights movement in the South gave birth to the community land trust. The nation's first CLT, New Communities Inc., was created to help African American farmers and their families gain economic independence in a turbulent time. CLTs of today are still engaged in making land available for rural homesteads, but many more CLTs are now working in cities and suburbs, serving families in need of affordable housing and neighborhoods in need of revitalization. Having been a part of New Communities at the beginning, I always hoped for the day when CLTs might be implemented nationally. From what I see in The Community Land Trust Reader, it would seem that day has finally arrived. --Mtamanika Youngblood, President/CEO<br> Sustainable Neighborhood Development Strategies, Inc.<p>