Sugar Land 95: Honoring Victims of Convict Leasing and Slavery's Legacy

Uncovering a Painful History

• 📌 A historical marker now stands where 95 bodies were uncovered in 2018, representing victims of convict leasing in Sugar Land.
• 💔 The youngest victim was 14, and the oldest was 70, all African-American inmates in the late 1800s.

Convict Leasing: Slavery by Another Name

• ⛓️ Texas laws and loopholes forced convict laborers to work on plantations, a practice described as slavery by a different name.
• 📈 The purpose of this program was profit, which organizers state morphed from actual slavery and was sometimes more egregious.
• 🏗️ The bodies were discovered during excavation for a construction project, highlighting a history that is often not widely talked about or taught.

Efforts to Preserve and Identify

• 🧬 Advocates have worked for five years to share the story and identify the Sugar Land 95, with some strides made through DNA testing.
• 💬 Descendants are being identified, such as Johnny Sue Davis and Sherah Agiri, who are linked to marker 54, bringing recognition to those who endured and suffered.
• 🌳 Juneteenth serves as a backdrop for honoring these individuals, symbolizing freedom while also being a day of reflection and community.

Future Memorial and Education

• 🏛️ The next step is to build an outside area to create a memorial that will better inform and educate the public about the Sugar Land 95.
• 🔍 Efforts continue to analyze and collect DNA to identify more of the 95, acknowledging that family trees are more like vines and complex to untangle.