That day forever changed Morris Slater. Soon he became the national sensation known as “Railroad Bill.” He robbed trains throughout Alabama, redistributing resources to poor Southern Black people.
He continued escaping police like it was nothing, and some even created folklore that he could turn into a fox.
In the throws of Jim Crow and anti-Black violence, Slater wasn’t just a hero. He was a symbol.
He gave our people hope as they battled daily to survive. And the police were terrified of him.
The search for Slater became a national manhunt, showing the true colors of the boys in blue. Their paranoia revealed the monster within, with them arresting and killing innocent Black people for merely looking similar to Slater.
America’s police system was created to control and oppress Black people, historically using lies, violence, and intimidation tactics to do so.
But heroes like Slater remind us that the only power police hold over us is the power we give them.
Slater’s legacy lives on. If you listen closely, you can hear his laughter in the whistle of trains as they zoom by. Onwards toward taking back our freedom by saying no to fear and not accepting anti-Blackness.