Convict Leasing: Justifications, Critiques, and the Case for Reparations

Abstract

The first prisoner received by State of Florida into convict leasing system was an African-American man named Cy Williams. He was officially entered into prison records as No. 1. rather than by his name. Williams did not know his own age upon arrival, but one prison official's memoir states that boy had been convicted when he was a mere pickaninny. Though not large enough to mount a horse, Williams nevertheless attempted to steal one and authorities caught him while he was trying to lead it off by halter. For his crime, a judge duly sentenced Williams to twenty years imprisonment. Malachi Martin, warden of work camp at time, unsure at first how to put such a small prisoner to work, eventually came up with an idea. He placed a pile of two bricks at each of end of prison yard while giving the black baby two more. The warden then ordered Williams to carry his two bricks to one of piles at either end of yard, place them on ground, pick up other two bricks, and carry them to pile at opposite end. He continued this process for entire day, always carrying two bricks at a time. Martin instructed Williams to keep piles of bricks neat and warned him not to break any of them. If he failed to keep his stack orderly, or if he damaged bricks, he would be whipped. He continued this activity throughout his sentence and grew up at task until given other labor assignments years later. Through abrasion from simply picking bricks up and setting them down, Williams managed to wear out four sets of bricks while carrying out his sentence. The state never considered commuting Williams' sentence, even after ten years of service as protocol dictated; proper avenues for commutation were not in place at camp because of inefficient leadership and poor organizational structures within prison system. Eventually, however, Williams received gain time and only served seventeen years out of his twenty-year sentence.