Alabama Inquiry Finds Brutal Conditions at Pratt Mines, Companies Ignore It

A state inquiry into the Pratt Coal and Iron Company's mines near Birmingham documents systematic brutality: convicts whipped for failing to meet coal quotas, denied medical care, housed in flooded shafts. Inspectors record whipping rates of dozens of lashes per infraction. The companies, including those connected to B.B. Comer, ignore the findings. The legislature takes no action. Nearly all convicts are Black men.