Yep. The 14th13th Amendment is anti-slavery but has a carve-out for prisoners. Prisons use slave labor and private prisons are companies that profit from slavery.
Honestly if I’m ever imprisoned for being homeless and it doesn’t look like there’s a way out, you can be damn sure I’m not going to willingly work. They must provide three meals and a place to sleep and that’s all I will do. At that point I have no home and the carrot of “getting out” isn’t there. You’re not getting my labor for free too.
Hey here's a horrible idea. Let's combine this with the debtors prisons we illegally run and recreate indentured servitude! As long as we call it something snazzy we can all pretend it's not slavery!
This article reeks of misunderstandings of America's peculiar prison instituon. I can assure you that there is no creature more satisfied than those in the the state penitentiary. Their every need is provided for. Clothing, food, shelter, all provided by the state.
(Is the /s necessary? I feel it cheapens the comment but oh well)
Guess why they're working so hard to criminalise poverty. Those private prisons won't fill themselves. And North Korea probably still has more prisoners by percentage of the population. Can't let these filthy commies win!
The US retains its status as the World’s No.1 Jailer with a prison population of 713 per 100,000 population, more than even any of the world’s most notorious and oppressive regimes like Myanmar (120 per 100,000 population), Cuba (510 per 100,000 population), and Iran (333 per 100,000). The only country that might challenge the US as the world’s No. 1 jailer is North Korea. Although information is limited, North Korea’s incarceration rate is estimated to be between 600-800 per 100,000 population.
I'll just ignore the fact that you believe criminals don't deserve basic human rights and ask if you really believe innocent people don't go to jail. Do you actually think the police you watch mess up daily never make mistakes?
Perfect observation! The criminal justice system is chock full of folks with mens rea, cops, judges, most of the staff in most of the jails... Good point!
While this is awful, imagine for a moment how fucked it is that our agricultural market is so depressed that it can only function if we pay "illegal" immigrants such a low wage that no one else would accept it, to the point that when that supply dries up, we can't possibly solve the problem except with legalized slavery.
They can function with legal laborers, they deliberately choose not to because they can rely on a permanently endangered domestic underclass that they can super-exploit for supet-profits.
I saw someone recently express a wish to see prisoners slaves burn down the factories and businesses of anyone who uses their forced labor. And I can't think of a more beautiful and justified action.
And I'll say what I said then, this doesn't count for voluntary work programs, unless they are "voluntary" and you get punished for not accepting them.
I truly hope to see the news when this happens. Slavery is one of the worst evils in the world, and the 13th amendment needs to be changed so that it's no longer allowed.
God i hate this part about the USA.
That's so uncivilized and barbaric, this is the 21th century and i always imagined it to be.... Cooler. Like the star-trek-utopia. But it turned out to be(come) a mixture of 1984, soylent green, lord of the flies and... Ah forget it.
In some countries that actually abolish slavery, it is. Forced labour is also forbidden by human rights, but I know some countries don't care about that either.
Extended sentence sounds like enough psychological torture to me. I spent one night locked up an i know i couldn't take it. Much as i'd like to act tough I'll come clean: id do anything to be free. I gotta scrub toilets for $1/hr? Yes boss
Most people can't take it. But when you have zero choice and zero options, you internalize the screaming and just endure. There's a reason why ex-cons carry a tension in their shoulders for the rest of their lives.
At your parole hearing: "I feel that I should be released. Clearly I am not pulling my weight in the work program. We all know how much it costs per inmate to keep running this prison. I believe it is in your interest to release me to increase your bottom line."
I don't know for sure, but I think that you're charged both to be in prison and for things like food, so if you refuse to work (for awful pay) you'll go hungry. Though likely your room won't be taken, I guess.
Disclaimer: I know almost nothing about the topic and very well may be entirely wrong.
You won't go hungry. They do have to feed you no matter what. I'm not sure what the pay rate is for being a farm worker but it probably puts a little on your commissary account so you can get new socks, ramen, coffee, a candy bar, or other "luxuries".
The truth is that it's so mind numbingly boring in prison that they'll have more volunteers than they need. People are itching for any hint of normalcy and a job is that hint. Others want that extra commissary money because they don't have families to put money on their books. Still others see it as an opportunity to possibly get contraband back to their cell or pass info in and out of the prison.
There's no shortage of volunteers for even the most menial labor from prison.
They charge you more than you make, to be sure that you're heavily in debt and likely to return to crime out of desperation at some point shortly after release. Either that or they get rich from your labor, and get even more rich from your family paying the bill. It's absolutely completely fucking insane to charge prisoners to be held against their will in prison, especially considering the prison profits from the prisoner. We live in a fucked up society where our leaders do nothing for us, or our problems, and everything for the wealth of a select few.
Why do you think most laws are made to disproportionately effect non white people negatively
america's prison system is the new slave trade
Anyone repukelicans view as beneath them or against their bigoted beleifs can be targeted by this and this is a major reason not to let trumpet into office
I'm glad I don't live in america but trumpet is a potential threat to other countries as well
To everyone saying "I wouldn't work", an advice: there's a better way. Be the one that fucks up the work by "being stupid". Refusing to work can be punished; being stupid is not.
If you don't want to clean the bathroom you can say "I won't" or do it once and say "look how clean it is now. And I have used that nice brush that's beside the WC".
This. If the prisoners are given the option to work instead of spend time in jail, and if they pay them for that labour, even if it's subsidized or whatever, this goes from questionably legal slavery to a work program for inmates.
It becomes a way for the inmates to get some cash, and gain practical work skills for when they eventually get released. The money should probably be saved for basic needs when released (food, housing, etc) and the work skills can be applied in future jobs. At least they would have some experience with working that will hopefully help them get a job after they're released.
There's still a big problem of people hiring ex-convicts, but that's a separate issue to be solved.
They could have turned this "you mean slavery?" Moment into a PR win simply by making the work voluntary and giving them modest compensation.
Also if it's a decent company then you might have a job lined up for you once you're out since you've worked there already and shown you can handle the job and so on. And having a job, income, some normalcy once you go out goes a long way. Turns this from exploitation to a way to reintroduce people to life outside of prison and whatnot. Not that companies wouldn't benefit from this too, since it'd most likely be less money than a normal full-time worker, but it could be a rare win-win situation if handled correctly.
because violent criminals should experience justice before death, and that justice should attempt to repay society for the crimes they've committed. I have yet to meet anyone against sentencing people to community service as part of a parole, but as soon as you also keep them in prison as part of their sentence, it's immoral and unjust?