Texas Republican asks state to rename several of the state's prisons honoring slave owners

[TexasTowelie]

by Jolie McCullough, Texas Tribune


A Republican who has led the Texas Legislature’s House Committee on Corrections for years is asking the state to rename prisons that honor slave owners and those tied to convict leasing, a system where Black people were funneled into the prison system and then leased out to private industries for unpaid labor.

State Rep. James White said Friday he is asking the Texas Board of Criminal Justice to rename several prisons and, in an interview with The Texas Tribune, specifically named the Darrington, Goree and Eastham prisons.

There are 99 state prisons and jails in the state, at least several of which are named after people with racist and sometimes violent histories, according to The Marshall Project.

“We’ve got correctional officers who have lost their lives, we’ve got crime victims that have contributed immensely to good victim’s rights advocacy, board members that have served and promoted good policies,” White said. “I just think there are other Texans that we can probably associate a name with a unit.”

Read more: https://www.texastribune.org/2021/01/29/texas-prisons-renamed-slave-owners/