Shifting terrains of risk: A history of natural hazards and displacement in three historic black communities of Central Austin, Texas

Abstract

An urban environmental history, this paper traces the histories of three historic black communities of Central Austin, Texas. It focuses on the interplay between two hazards – natural hazards and the hazard of displacement – and the changing environmental and socioeconomic conditions that altered the communities’ susceptibility to both. In the process, it brings a historic lens to bear on double exposure and environmental gentrification literature while also building upon research into the ways that human manipulations of natural topography and hydrology have shaped the social landscapes of US cities. • Human manipulations of natural hydrology shaped Austin's social landscape. • Greening projects and hazard mitigation works in Austin were often designed to displace black people. • Double exposure literature is a useful framework with which to engage with the history of Austin's racial geographies.