In 2018, the discovery of an unmarked burial ground at the former Imperial State Prison Farm site in Sugar Land drew national attention to an abhorrent chapter in history. Archaeologists at the site found the skeletal remains of 95 victims of the convict leasing system, which was used after the Civil War to replicate the oppression that existed under slavery. Although the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prohibited involuntary servitude, it created an exemption for people convicted of crimes. Southern states, including Texas, took advantage by enacting "Black Codes," laws that applied only to African Americans, who could be prosecuted criminally for such offenses as loitering, breaking curfew, or not carrying proof of employment.

The state of Texas leased prisoners as cheap labor to private railways, mines, and agricultural operations, including the sugar plantations along the Brazos River. While receiving no pay, convicts often endured conditions even more brutal than slavery, given that contractors had no financial interest in their well-being. More than 3,500 Texas prisoners died between 1866 and 1912, when the legislature finally outlawed convict leasing. While the state and employers profited, the families and communities of victims suffered damage that spanned generations. A full understanding of the convict leasing system and its after effects is vital to addressing issues that continue to plague society today, including mass incarceration, convict labor, prison privatization, and entrenched poverty. This is why I filed the following legislation;

HB 2036, HB 2428, HB 2430, HCR 51, HCR 55, and HJR 87.

This bold slew of legislation is designed to replace the confederate monument in the capitol with a plaque to honor the victims of convict leasing, to commission a study to determine the legacy of convict leasing, to establish a museum to educate the public on the history of convict leasing, and to administer $95 Million in reparations to the descendants of the 95 victims of the convict leasing system discovered in Sugarland.

Your voices were heard and your concerns are being addressed. I have been working diligently with various community stakeholders to address the Sugarland 95. This legislation is the next step in the fight. Please urge your representatives to support this convict leasing legislation, and let us ensure that the lives lost to the convict leasing system were not lost in vain.

Ron Reynolds represents Texas House District 27, which encompasses communities of Fort Bend County. Representative Reynolds currently serves as a member of the House Committees on Defense and Veterans' Affairs and Environmental Regulations