First published 2010
Michael O'McCarthy and Robert W. Straley arrive as teenagers at the Florida School for Boys in Marianna during the 1950s and 60s. Authorities have labeled them "incorrigible youth" and sentenced them to this institution that presents itself as a model reform school. The campus appears immaculate and university-like, but behind its gates lies systematic brutality. Guards and administrators function as tormentors rather than educators. The boys witness assault, rape, and possible murder while enduring their own abuse. For fifty years, both men carry these experiences in silence. A series of unexpected events eventually brings O'McCarthy, now a rights activist, and Straley back together. They decide to expose the truth about the institution they believe operated as a youth prison with a century of abuse. Their campaign transforms their own lives while inspiring other survivors to speak out. The story reveals how an entire town maintained secrecy about the school's practices and how government officials failed to address documented wrongdoing.
Genres: abuse, biography-memoir, activism, american-history
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: based-on-true-events, expos, social-commentary
Setting: Florida School for Boys, Marianna
Period: 1950s, 1960s
256 pages · Kindle Edition · St. Martin's Press
Content warnings: abuse, physical-abuse, sexual-assault