Erased by Design: An Antenarrative of Ellenton and the Savannah River Plant

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to examine the Atomic Energy Commission’s use of eminent domain to seize the town of Ellenton and initiate the Savannah River Plant (SRP). We disrupt the presiding race-neutral history by reframing the story of Ellenton’s African American residents, who were both disproportionately impacted by the seizure and whose experiences were erased from Ellenton’s history.Method: We analyze official SRP’s histories alongside counter-narratives for examples of deceptive messaging and whiteness as property.Results: Through our analysis of the “race-neutral histories,” we recognize that African Americans–particularly sharecroppers and their families–bore the brunt of the Cold War’s Savannah River Site’s bomb plant.Conclusion: Practitioners who are interested in organizational DEI work should recognize the danger of race-neutral accounts and actively search out excluded perspectives to give fuller context to their organization’s work.