First Available Cell: Desegregation of the Texas Prison System

Chad R. Trulson · James W. Marquart

Jan 2010 · University of Texas Press

About this eBook

Decades after the U.S. Supreme Court and certain governmental actions struck down racial segregation in the larger society, American prison administrators still boldly adhered to discriminatory practices. Not until 1975 did legislation prohibit racial segregation and discrimination in Texas prisons. However, vestiges of this practice endured behind prison walls. Charting the transformation from segregation to desegregation in Texas prisons—which resulted in Texas prisons becoming one of the most desegregated places in America—First Available Cell chronicles the pivotal steps in the process, including prison director George J. Beto's 1965 decision to allow inmates of different races to co-exist in the same prison setting, defying Southern norms.

The authors also clarify the significant impetus for change that emerged in 1972, when a Texas inmate filed a lawsuit alleging racial segregation and discrimination in the Texas Department of Corrections. Perhaps surprisingly, a multiracial group of prisoners sided with the TDC, fearing that desegregated housing would unleash racial violence. Members of the security staff also feared and predicted severe racial violence. Nearly two decades after the 1972 lawsuit, one vestige of segregation remained in place: the double cell. Revealing the aftermath of racial desegregation within that 9 x 5 foot space, First Available Cell tells the story of one of the greatest social experiments with racial desegregation in American history.

Ratings and reviews

Colin Flaherty received numerous accolades for his work in mainstream journalism, and now conducts a weekly radio program with his brother in which they view politics from a left-right divide. In addition, Colin just wrote a book that is not about its seeming topic. From first glance, this book would appear to be about race riots, and while it documents them well, the real purpose of this book is to ask Americans what’s wrong with us. Why can’t we talk honestly about this situation, why can’t we talk honestly about race, and why does our media avoid mention of necessary facts? Flaherty works his magic by creating a fact pattern out of many disparate news articles, which he then compares to YouTube footage of the event, showing us what actually happened. As this is an e-book, you can follow the links yourself, which is what this book challenges you to do. He does not ever stray into racism — at all. He does not blame African-Americans, or anyone else, for this spate of black on women, homosexuals, Asians and whites. He simply points out that it is occurring and that it upsets all Americans and weakens our faith in our media, who are brushing it under the rug. Writing in clear and sometimes sarcastic prose, Flaherty speaks from his strength, which is understanding media. He links together abundant citations, all from mainstream media and many from African-American media, in order to illustrate his point.

About the author

Chad R. Trulson is Associate Professor of Criminal Justice at the University of North Texas in Denton and the co-author of Juvenile Justice: The System, Process, and Law.

James W. Marquart is Associate Provost and Professor of Criminology at the University of Texas at Dallas, where he also directs the criminology and sociology programs and has co-authored numerous books, including the award-winning The Rope, the Chair, and the Needle: Capital Punishment in Texas, 1923–1990.