On Martin Luther King Day five years ago, Allen Feaster and Fonda
Whitfield faced every parent's worst nightmare. Allen's son Durrell Feaster and Fonda's son Deon Whitfield were found dead in their cell at the Preston youth prison. After being locked in their cell for 23 hours every day as
"punishment," Deon and Durrell hanged themselves using bed sheets tied
to the corner of their top bunk bed.
The brutal conditions in Preston that led to Deon's and Durrell's
suicides still persist. Hundreds of
millions of dollars and court-ordered reforms have done little to
change the system that took Durrell and Deon away from their families.
Books Not Bars is launching a campaign to close Preston. We'll hold rallies, write to our newspapers, and call on our elected officials to close the prison. Please join us.
