Georgia’s Supreme Court has delivered a major victory to residents of Sapelo Island, siding with the Gullah Geechee community in their fight to preserve land and cultural heritage.

As Capital B reports, the justices unanimously overturned a lower court’s decision that blocked a referendum to repeal a zoning ordinance passed by McIntosh County leaders two years ago. The ruling means residents can now move forward with a vote on whether to restrict new development that many fear would drive displacement.

The zoning change at the center of the case would allow homes in the historic Hogg Hummock neighborhood—also called Hogg Hammock—to double in size, from 1,400 to 3,000 square feet. Residents said that increase would raise property taxes and invite developers to the island, threatening one of the last intact Gullah Geechee communities in the U.S.

“What we’re looking at is the new redlining,” said Reginald Hall, a descendant and island resident. “The new redlining says that you zone some poor folk or less fortunate folk, less economic folk out of their land value as an increase. … We’ve been located as family members, descendants of enslaved people, for 229 years this year.”

Advocates also said the dispute is about more than zoning—it’s about voting rights. County commissioners previously halted a scheduled election after more than 2,300 residents signed a petition to challenge the ordinance. Larry Riley of the ADOS Advocacy Foundation (an organization centered on reparations support) said, “We’re seeing an increase in voter suppression. He added, “If the court sides with McIntosh County, that sets precedent that this could happen more often in other places.”

For many, the win is about protecting culture. “Sapelo Island is one of the last intact Gullah Geechee communities in North America,” said resident Parthenia Myers. “It’s important that she is preserved for her people now and for her future generations.”