ST. CLOUD, Fla. – St. Cloud is addressing its past reputation as a “sundown town.”
St. Cloud will discuss it during tonight’s city council meeting. Listed on the agenda is a proclamation “Denouncing St. Cloud’s “Sundown Town” Past Reputation and Affirming St. Cloud’s Acceptance of All Residents.”
News 6 spoke with public historian Anthony Dixon, who has authored books about the African diaspora in Florida and the state’s Black Seminoles, about what “sundown towns” are.
“‘Sundown towns’ basically these areas in which there’s either an unspoken rule or there’s a law that prohibits black people from being out after a certain time of night,” he explained.
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Dixon notes that “sundown towns” originated from slavery when enslaved people faced numerous restrictions.
“They couldn’t walk in groups of more than five and they certainly couldn’t be out at night,” he said. “Of course, that was not only a measurement of control, but it was also rooted in the fear of some backlash of uprising. So, as the enslavement period ended, those slave codes that held those types of ideologies and laws became black codes because they still had the ideology of controlling black lives and the fear was still there.
“So, we get to a period where they have ‘sundown towns’, particularly, becoming not just the social norms, but also put into law in local areas where blacks are not allowed outside of their homes or to even be out in the street passing through a city after a certain time of night.”
After segregation ended, these towns persisted, even if there were no laws restricting people.
“The sad part is that ‘sundown towns’ didn’t just cease to exist after the civil rights movement,” he said. “You knew harassment was a higher possibility. You could get all types of speeding tickets and get pulled over, and it could escalate from there.”
Now, 116 years after its founding, St. Cloud is set to denounce its association with “sundown towns”.
“Well, it’s a part of progress, right?” Dixon said. “For cities to acknowledge the past and make an effort to move forward shows that the country is becoming more culturally diverse and accepting of people, regardless of their race or culture.”
While Dixon sees St. Cloud’s public declaration as a good thing, he hopes it will lead to greater acceptance in daily life.
“The theoretical part is whether the ideologies are all gone and how we continue to get rid of those ideologies. Those ideologies directly influence practical living. So, making this outward declaration is a positive move and we hope it translates into positive action,” he said.
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