Stolen Girls of the Lee County Stockade

In 1963, seventeen girls who were in the 11-15 age group spent the majority of the summer and two weeks into the fall unlawfully incarcerated in a small barred room in the Lee County Stockade that is located on the outskirts of Leesburg, Georgia. These young girls were locked up without necessities for life. The deplorable conditions under which they survived were horrendous. These young girls were arrested in Americus, Georgia for marching for freedom, justice and equality. They were not all locked up on the same day, at the same time nor for the same reason. They were arrested for participating in at least one demonstration or protest in July, 1963. All seventeen , now Stolen Girls were released from confinement on Friday, September 13, 1963.

Sixteen of seventeen of the young girls were captured on film by Mr. Danny Lyon who was then a Photographer for SNCC. Our historical photograph was featured in Jet Magazine in 1966. In 2006, our photograph was featured in Essence Magazine and all seventeen girls who lived, endured and survived being incarcerated in the stockade were dubbed the Stolen Girls of the Lee County Stockade by Ms.. Donna Owens. She appropriately dubbed us "Stolen Girls" because no one from the civil community of Americus knew where the seventeen girls were secretly being confined for about two weeks. The parents, and movement participants searched frantically, to no avail.

Emmarene Streeter, Unlawfully incarcerated at age thirteen,396, EMMARENE STREETER,INNOVATIVE, CA