This presentation examines the historical, cultural, and architectural relationship between Black communities and water, reframing aquatic space as a site of both trauma and possibility. Drawing from African water cosmologies, the Middle Passage, segregation-era aquatic exclusion, and contemporary environmental injustice, the session traces a continuous historical pattern that has shaped how water is accessed, feared, and controlled in the built environment today. The presentation introduces how this legacy is beginning to be challenged through cultural work, public health initiatives, and emerging architectural responses, while emphasizing that meaningful change requires intentional design engagement. Attendees will be guided through how past decisions—embedded in infrastructure, policy, and spatial design—continue to influence present inequities, and why designers must first acknowledge this history in order to move forward responsibly. Rather than positioning design as neutral, the session frames architecture as an active participant in either reinforcing or dismantling these patterns. This presentation ultimately serves as a call to action, urging designers to critically reflect on their role and to envision water-centered spaces that prioritize equity, safety, cultural memory, and collective healing.