Fort Bend ISD Ends Legal Action To Move Historic Remains

SUGAR LAND, TX — The Fort Bend ISD board of trustees announced Thursday the district will cease all legal action to have the remains of 95 people found buried last year at a school construction site.

The announcement comes days after the board of trustees voted to authorize the superintendent to negotiate an interlocal agreement with Fort Bend County and mirrors the vote by the Fort Bend County Commissioners Court on Feb. 12.

The decision will keep the remains where they are, and the district will search for another site to build the James Reese Career and Technical Center.

Full statement from FBISD Board President Jason Burdine:

“I am proud of the decision the Fort Bend ISD Board of Trustees made during Monday’s Board meeting to authorize the District to begin negotiations with Fort Bend County to find a solution on how best to memorialize the Sugar Land 95.

Fort Bend ISD agrees that the Sugar Land 95 need to be memorialized at the site of discovery. We have embraced the offer made by Fort Bend County to work with us to create an appropriate memorial for the victims of the convict leasing system. We are hopeful and optimistic that by working together with the County these bodies can be reinterred so they can rest in peace. Should we encounter any obstacles to this solution, we will look to the State of Texas, other elected officials, as well as lawmakers, to assist us in finding a solution.

We appreciate and welcome the County’s recent commitment to work with the District toward a solution that preserves the story and memory of those buried on this historic site. In order to show our good faith and commitment to working toward a comprehensive solution, the District will halt all further court action while we explore all available options with the County. The District’s plan to build the portion of the building that is within the cemetery area has been canceled.

We are confident that our partnership with the County will result in a solution that allows the historic cemetery to operate by a legally authorized entity.

We look forward to working with local elected officials and community leaders to implement this solution as quickly as possible and keep our promise to honor and educate the public and future generations about the 95 souls who were previously lost to history.”

The remains are believed to be freed slaves who were used as forced labor between the 1890s and the early 1900s, as part of the convict-lease program.

• School Construction Project Unearths Century-Old Slave Cemetery
• Sugar Land Coordinates Move Of Slave Remains To Historic Cemetery
• City Forms Task Force To Ensure Proper Burial Of Historic Remains
• Judge Halts Removal Of 95 Bodies From FBISD Construction Site
• Texas AG To Weigh In On DNA Testing Of Remains From FBISD Site

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