Classmate of Daniel Henry shares story about his life and death
In 1968, a Black Deaf man named Daniel Henry, who lived in the Salisbury, Maryland area, died after he was shot by a police officer. It sparked three days of riots in May 1968. I had an opportunity to interview someone who knew Daniel Henry. His name is Milbert Jones.
MILBERT JONES:
My name is Milbert Jones. I’m from Hagerstown, Maryland.
THE DAILY MOTH:
Milbert explained that he and Daniel were students at the Maryland School for Colored Blind and Deaf in Overlea, near Baltimore before the school closed and its 12 Black Deaf students transferred to the Maryland School for the Deaf in Frederick.
(Video clip of Milbert Jones pointing to a school picture showing Daniel Henry as a young boy)
MILBERT JONES:
Daniel Henry was a nice person and we had a good relationship. We stayed at the Overlea school for three years. We then moved into the Frederick, MD school. Both of us grew up and moved together. Later on, he got into some trouble and was transferred to another school called Redwood, which is a reform / disciplinary program. He was there for about 2 or 3 years. He was released from Redwood in Baltimore and then moved to the Eastern Shore. Daniel Henry was about 24 years old and I had not heard from him until he was shot in the Eastern Shore. I found out it was a Black Deaf man and it was Daniel Henry. I was very shocked and upset. I knew him and we grew up together. He was deaf and he was good, he was not a bad person. What happened was that at the Eastern Shore, there were protests as a result of Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination. Daniel Henry was walking in the area. Some people broke into stores. A police officer shot at Daniel Henry as he was in the area, in his neck. People were very upset and angry over the shooting. He was deaf. Many people were very sad.
THE DAILY MOTH:
An article in delmarvanow.com, a local news outlet, explained that according to research from another newspaper, a police officer shot at Daniel Henry’s neck after he ran away following a struggle. Henry was running away from the officer when he was shot.
MILBERT JONES:
It is very sad. Why did he have to shoot? I’m heartbroken. We want to honor him as a deaf person because Black Lives Matter. There was no reason, he was just deaf. I’m very sorry that it happened.
THE DAILY MOTH:
Milbert explained that the Redwood program he was in had no interpreters nor accommodations for deaf people. He said the reform school did not benefit Daniel Henry in any way.
MILBERT JONES:
Redwood did not have interpreters or services. The education was of a poor quality. He was sent there because he did bad things. If he stayed at the Frederick school, he might have gotten better and improved. That’s why it is important to keep on nurturing a person. Don’t just kick them out. They won’t learn anything and end up on the streets. That’s why it happened. I’m very sad that a police officer shot at him. The Redwood school did nothing for him. It’s very sad.
THE DAILY MOTH:
Milbert said if Daniel Henry was still alive today, he would have been about the same as his age, in his 70’s.
MILBERT JONES:
I remember the Daniel Henry incident. It was a long time ago but I have never forgotten. Now with the Black Lives Matter movement, I see a connection between Daniel Henry’s shooting with George Floyd and what happened to him. Why does it keep on happening, and to Black Deaf people as well? It’s very sad to see, and I’m sorry about it. You must learn that Black lives matter. Okay.
THE DAILY MOTH:
Thank you for your time, Milbert.
https://www.delmarvanow.com/story/news/local/maryland/2018/05/10/salisbury-md-1968-riots-daniel-henry-shooting-racial-divide/557450002/