Plats are detailed documents and maps that show how land is subdivided into individual parcels, the arrangement of streets and alleys, and the restrictions, covenants, and limitations that govern how and for what purposes the land may be developed.

Historically, plats often contained restrictions that would prohibit Black, Asian, Jewish, and other marginalized groups from buying or occupying properties within the subdivision. Supreme Court case Shelley v. Kraemer in 1948 ruled that courts could no longer enforce these restrictions, and in 1968 the Fair Housing Act fully outlawed them. Despite these changes to the laws, many plat documents still contain these historical restrictions today.

Racially restrictive covenants were private, deed-based rules that explicitly barred people of certain marginalized identities from buying or living in specific homes or neighborhoods.

Redlining was a broader, institutional practice in which banks and government agencies denied loans and investment to entire neighborhoods, often based on the race of residents. Color-coded "risk maps" were created for cities to rate neighborhoods based on perceived risk for housing investment, which led to a systemic disinvestment in communities of color.

While racially restrictive covenants were written directly into property records (like plats), redlining shaped housing outcomes through lending and insurance decisions.

The Human Rights Commission (HRC) is a 9-member municipal commission that serves Oklahoma City residents in areas relating to human rights. The HRC is empowered to educate the public about human rights and to act for the benefit of all residents to eliminate unlawful discrimination based on race, color, religion, creed, sex, gender, national origin, age, familial status, genetic information or disability, in employment, housing and public accommodations, as defined by applicable laws. See Oklahoma City Municipal Code, Ordinance No. 27,109.

Updating the plats matters because it corrects the formal land records to align with current law and removes language that was originally intended to exclude people from owning or occupying property. Having this outdated language still in recorded documents can be confusing, unsettling to people who encounter it, and at odds with how property ownership is actually treated under the law. Addressing this language makes the public record accurate and up to date.