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Unreformed: the Story of the Alabama Industrial School for Negro Children

iHeartPodcasts 11 Episodes Sep 14, 2026

In 1968, five Black girls were arrested in Montgomery, Alabama, after running away from the Alabama Industrial School for Negro Children in Mount Meigs, a state-run reform school. They wanted to expose the physical and sexual abuse, squalid conditions, and forced field labor that former students described as a slave camp. Host Josie Duffy Rice traces how this institution derailed the lives of thousands of Black children over decades, set against the tail end of the Civil Rights movement in Alabama. The Peabody-nominated series combines archival investigation with testimony from survivors who are still haunted by their time there.

Episodes

Introducing – Examined: The Backfire Effect Sep 14, 2026 2020 Nearly 40 years ago, in the parking lot of a community college in Port Huron, Michigan, a 20-year-old student named Scott Macklem was shot dead in broad daylight. His murder shocked the community. It made no sense. The police quickly found their suspect. There was only one problem: the man said he was nowhere near the scene of the crime. And he could prove it. In "Examined: The Backfire Effect," j

Episode 8: Searching for Justice Mar 8, 2023 2694 In the final episode, we look at where Lonnie, Mary, Johnny, Jennie, Johnny Mack, and Denny are fifty years after leaving Mt. Meigs. We also look at how juvenile justice in America has evolved and how other juvenile reform schools that mistreated their students have atoned for their wrongs. And lastly, we get a glimpse into the current state of Mt. Meigs. Has it changed? Or is it the same place it

Unreformed presents "5-4: Tanner v. United States." Mar 7, 2023 2917 Hey folks, Josie here! We wanted to share a show that we think you might like. It's called 5-4, and it's about how much the Supreme Court sucks. 5-4 is all about how the Supreme Court DOESN'T provide justice, and we think that will resonate with Unreformed listeners. If you like it, you can subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. About 5-4: A podcast about how much the Supreme Court sucks. It’s

Episode 7: The Aftermath Mar 1, 2023 2105 Many people who were incarcerated at Mt. Meigs as children ended up spending their entire lives tethered to the criminal legal system. Many were sentenced to life in prison. Many others were sentenced to death. This episode traces the lives of two of those people: Jesse James Andrews and Johnny Mack Young. If you or someone you know attended Mt. Meigs and would like to connect with us, please ema

Episode 6: Scallawags and Carpetbaggers Feb 21, 2023 2519 Denny Abbott enlists the help of lawyer Ira Dement to sue the state of Alabama. What ensues is a years-long battle, multiple lawsuits, personal turmoil, but also...a glimmer of hope for the kids at Mt. Meigs. Special thanks to Denny Abbott and Douglas Kalajian for the use of their book, They Had No Voice: My Fight for Alabama's Forgotten Children. If you or someone you know attended Mt. Meigs and

Episode 5: When Mary Met Denny Feb 15, 2023 1508 Mary Stephens and four other girls escape Mt. Meigs and are determined to tell someone about what's happened to them. Probation officer Denny Abbott must make a decision. If you or someone you know attended Mt. Meigs and would like to connect with us, please email mtmeigspodcast@gmail.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode 4: The Runaways Feb 8, 2023 1717 Since the 1920s, notices started appearing in the local newspapers near Mt. Meigs. They said things like "Six armed negroes escaped Mount Meigs Industrial School” or “Police seeking escape artist in burglary." In this episode, we hear about the tradition of running away at Mt. Meigs. Lonnie tells us about his experience running away and the harrowing consequences that led him to spend months on t

Episode 3: Cornelia's Dream Feb 1, 2023 2378 By the 1960s, the Alabama Industrial School for Negro Children was an early prototype of the for-profit prison. But it wasn’t designed that way. In this episode, we go back to the early 20th century when a Black woman and student of Booker T. Washington named Cornelia Bowen founded Mt. Meigs. She envisioned a safe haven for Black kids who weren’t being served by the state of Alabama and believed i

Episode 2: The Arrival Jan 25, 2023 2944 Survivors of Mt. Meigs share how they ended up in the juvenile justice system and what happened once they went down the long road to the reformatory. Lonnie and Johnny meet the foreboding superintendent EB Holloway, while Mary and Jennie must deal with the girls’ matron, Fannie B. Matthews. If you or someone you know attended Mt. Meigs and would like to connect with us, please email mtmeigspodcas

Episode 1: The Lucky Ones Jan 18, 2023 2390 Reporter Josie Duffy Rice travels to a small town outside Montgomery, Alabama, and tries to visit a juvenile reform school, once called the Alabama Industrial School for Negro Children or Mt. Meigs. The school opened in the early 20th century as a safe haven for Black kids, but by the 1960s, it had become something else entirely. Then one day, in 1968, five Black girls ran away, determined to find

Introducing: Unreformed: the Story of the Alabama Industrial School for Negro Children Jan 9, 2023 130 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Unreformed: the Story of the Alabama Industrial School for Negro Children

Episodes

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