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A review by aswygs
We Carry Their Bones: The Search for Justice at the Dozier School for Boys by Erin Kimmerle
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.25
“What gives the dead peace? is it burial itself? Or is it justice?”
Dozier School for Boys (AGDS), was a reform school operated by the state of Florida in the panhandle town of Marianna from January 1, 1900, to June 30, 2011.” 111 YEARS IS CRAZY
great historical account of the Dozier School for Boys and the process of excavating and identifying the remains of boys who died in custody
fascinating to learn more about forensic anthropology and how identifying remains, cause of death, etc. can be used to prologue justice
the history and science is A+++ but tbh the author’s storytelling as an autobiography of sorts reeked of white saviorism and white feminism. in some ways, she placed herself at the center of this narrative in ways that felt a little insensitive. like the reflections on mansplaining. I get it girl, it’s hard to be a woman in STEM, but read the room. also I could tell immediately she was not from the south and was not as in touch with black people’s modern experiences of racism.
but learned so much and am thankful to have gotten the nonfiction account after reading “The Reformatory.” esp cool to see the Tananarive Due shoutout after reading her narrativized account of this story
also so interesting to see the prevalence of polk county and Lakeland in the stories of those that died and their surviving family members
FACTS (and reflections) TO REMEMBER:
81 people died at school over history
claimed 31 graves on property
80% of boys died following escape attempts
23% of boys died in first 3 months (1/2 of these died in first month)
70% of boys that died were black
FOUND NO CRIMES TO PROSECUTE
omg not blaming sickle cell trait for the death
and the staff not dispiriting the beatings, just the severity
beatings prohibited in adult prisons, but not juvenile facilities; corporal punishment only banned in 1968
ACLU lawsuit in 1983 for solitary confinement
2009 FDLE Report: 81 people died at school over years
the chronicling the tension of the research and the pushback from locals who were “proud of the school” is just so interesting and disturbing
“They were inmates, not children” - the PREJUDICE, and “throwaway children”
“The past is never dead. It’s not even past.”
International Coalition of Sites of Conscience - network of historic sites
Dozier Memorial & Monument Review Committee - most families and survivors did not want reburials in Marianna [HOWEVER, not memorials or grave markers anywhere for folks reburied. Not in Tallahassee or Boot Hill]
April 2018: Florida legislature issued a formal apology
2017: new GPR revealed 27 abnormalities, but not graves
55 bodies, 46 names
Civil Rights History:
Southern Homestead Act of 1866 distributed and loaned money to previously enslaved people (by 1910, 14% of American farms were owned by black landowners)
“Jackson County War” over land ownership and lack of documentation
1934 lynching of Claude Neal in Jackson county (murdered by the “Committee of Six”), attended by 5k white people from 9 different states
Jim Crow laws to control the movement and wealth of black folks (esp vagrancy)
Convict lease system and reform or industrial schools
Native American Graves Protection Act
In FL, all capital cases have no statute of limitations
St. Augustine Four: 2 girls sent to Lowell, 2 boys sent to Dozier
Cool Archeo Things:
“ground-truthing” = the process of peaking in to the earth without disturbing any remains to see if there are different colors in the soil, indicating someone had previously dug a hole there
stratigraphy = mixing of colors from the different soil layers
bioarchaeology = excavates and researches ancient and historic cemeteries
samples mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) from maternal side to compare
Excavation process
1) defined units: dig an exact, square hole (but slow and labor intensive)
2) excavating the feature: remove top layer of soil to expose multiple graves at once
found 55 graves
created 3D models of bones, tested DNA from bone and teeth, and created facial reconstructions over bones to try to identify victims
identify age from tooth development, bone fusion
Dozier School for Boys (AGDS), was a reform school operated by the state of Florida in the panhandle town of Marianna from January 1, 1900, to June 30, 2011.” 111 YEARS IS CRAZY
great historical account of the Dozier School for Boys and the process of excavating and identifying the remains of boys who died in custody
fascinating to learn more about forensic anthropology and how identifying remains, cause of death, etc. can be used to prologue justice
the history and science is A+++ but tbh the author’s storytelling as an autobiography of sorts reeked of white saviorism and white feminism. in some ways, she placed herself at the center of this narrative in ways that felt a little insensitive. like the reflections on mansplaining. I get it girl, it’s hard to be a woman in STEM, but read the room. also I could tell immediately she was not from the south and was not as in touch with black people’s modern experiences of racism.
but learned so much and am thankful to have gotten the nonfiction account after reading “The Reformatory.” esp cool to see the Tananarive Due shoutout after reading her narrativized account of this story
also so interesting to see the prevalence of polk county and Lakeland in the stories of those that died and their surviving family members
FACTS (and reflections) TO REMEMBER:
81 people died at school over history
claimed 31 graves on property
80% of boys died following escape attempts
23% of boys died in first 3 months (1/2 of these died in first month)
70% of boys that died were black
FOUND NO CRIMES TO PROSECUTE
omg not blaming sickle cell trait for the death
and the staff not dispiriting the beatings, just the severity
beatings prohibited in adult prisons, but not juvenile facilities; corporal punishment only banned in 1968
ACLU lawsuit in 1983 for solitary confinement
2009 FDLE Report: 81 people died at school over years
the chronicling the tension of the research and the pushback from locals who were “proud of the school” is just so interesting and disturbing
“They were inmates, not children” - the PREJUDICE, and “throwaway children”
“The past is never dead. It’s not even past.”
International Coalition of Sites of Conscience - network of historic sites
Dozier Memorial & Monument Review Committee - most families and survivors did not want reburials in Marianna [HOWEVER, not memorials or grave markers anywhere for folks reburied. Not in Tallahassee or Boot Hill]
April 2018: Florida legislature issued a formal apology
2017: new GPR revealed 27 abnormalities, but not graves
55 bodies, 46 names
Civil Rights History:
Southern Homestead Act of 1866 distributed and loaned money to previously enslaved people (by 1910, 14% of American farms were owned by black landowners)
“Jackson County War” over land ownership and lack of documentation
1934 lynching of Claude Neal in Jackson county (murdered by the “Committee of Six”), attended by 5k white people from 9 different states
Jim Crow laws to control the movement and wealth of black folks (esp vagrancy)
Convict lease system and reform or industrial schools
Native American Graves Protection Act
In FL, all capital cases have no statute of limitations
St. Augustine Four: 2 girls sent to Lowell, 2 boys sent to Dozier
Cool Archeo Things:
“ground-truthing” = the process of peaking in to the earth without disturbing any remains to see if there are different colors in the soil, indicating someone had previously dug a hole there
stratigraphy = mixing of colors from the different soil layers
bioarchaeology = excavates and researches ancient and historic cemeteries
samples mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) from maternal side to compare
Excavation process
1) defined units: dig an exact, square hole (but slow and labor intensive)
2) excavating the feature: remove top layer of soil to expose multiple graves at once
found 55 graves
created 3D models of bones, tested DNA from bone and teeth, and created facial reconstructions over bones to try to identify victims
identify age from tooth development, bone fusion