No, I’m not referring to the daily lottery number. 111 is a reference to the one hundred and eleven years that the city of Marianna, in the state of Florida, operated the Arthur G. Dozier Boys, a Reform School.
Opened in 1900, the school operated with impunity until June 2011. There are those that say the past is the past and this is true in part; but, when the past has a continual effect on the present and future, it’s difficult to leave the past in the past. History appears to be demanding recompense for these transgressions. Though the Florida Legislative body adopted a resolution and formally offered up an apology for the mistreatment of those sent to Dozier; its scars are still a vivid memory for survivors. In the apology, the state, “regrets its treatment of boys sent to Dozier and the Okeechobee School.” Too little, too late. This is another chapter in the shameful history of Florida. https://atlanticblackstar.com/2017/05/09/murder-forced-labor-forgotten-black-boys-florida-dozier-school-boys/
Dozier and other atrocities relegated to the annuls of America’s hidden history are coming to light, particularly as more African Americans search for their past. It appears we’re discovering cascades of historical avalanches of racial and ethnic biases directed at populations of people, simply because of the color of their skin or cultural beliefs. These events are horrific and are a constant reminder that this nation has a serious problem with character and credibility. The nation’s deep scars and unhealed wounds are well hidden; deeply ingrained in the fabric of history and continue to fester, seeping poison into American society. But fabric sometimes unravels and history has a way of speaking its truth regardless of how tightly weaved or any attempts to bury it with mistruths or omissions.
Dozier School for Boys is another of those truths. Opening in 1900 as the Florida State Reform School on 1,400 acres west of Tallahassee, in Marianna, Florida; Dozier has been known by several names. Throughout its history, Dozier was known for harsh conditions and brutal treatment. A succession of reports and commissions over the years called for reforms, but little changed. Boys were sent to Dozier for simply running away from home, smoking cigarettes in schools, or for just being labeled an incorrigible child. For many who were sent there, it was the last stop… a death trap for far too many boys. At least 81 boys are known to have died there. https://www.npr.org/2012/10/15/162941770/floridas-dozier-school-for-boys-a-true-horror-story
Reformatory schools were penal institutions, generally for teenagers that mainly operated between 1830 and 1900. In the United Kingdom and its colonies reformatories commonly called reform schools were set up from 1854 onwards for youngsters who were convicted of a crime as an alternative to adult prison. Industrial schools were set up for vagrants and children who required protection. Both were certified by the government in 1857, and in 1932 the systems merged. Both were sanctioned and became approved schools. Reformatory schools were provided for criminal children while industrial schools were intended to prevent vulnerable children from becoming criminals. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reform
This episode in our America’s history isn’t innocuous in any sense; it’s an egregious act spurred on by greed, circumvention of laws, payoffs, and a general uncaring attitude toward minor children, especially Black children. This created a culture that sanctioned the rape, forced labor, death, and overall abuse of hundreds of boys whose loved ones, in many cases never knew their fates. In most cases the families of the missing, abused, or dead boys were outright lied to. Most of the boys sent to Dozier were Black, with little or no resources to fight their sentences. Forensic Anthropologists found evidence of mass graves sites; the city of Marianna was more concerned with how Dozier’s misdeeds would affect tourism in their city. https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_ releases/2020-02/aaft-dou013120.php
Episodes such as Dozier continue to reverberate throughout American history, adding to the continuous fight for transparency, equality and fairness. The indifference toward the suffering of African Americans and the dismissal of their contributions to American society represents the lengths to which America has gone to both erase our history and dismiss our contributions to this country.
Are stories like this a harbinger of what the future holds or an affirmation of past sins and hope for a very different future going forward? Systemic change needs to happen and not just periodically; but, on a continual basis. This is to say, that America shouldn’t wait for situations like the George Floyd or Breonna Taylor tragedies to determine that change is needed. Change needs to happen often and transparent oversight is essential to assure that another one hundred eleven years of Dozier or facilities like it aren’t part of our society. African Americans have always been under-represented in most sectors of American society; but, when it comes to reformation and criminal justice in general, over-representation.
Any action that’s powered solely on hate and greed will eventually reach a point where it’ll lose its power.
