Slavery was abolished in the United States following the adoption of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution.
But the fine print of that amendment allowed a form of slavery, and its cousin, indentured servitude, to exist at the state level as a criminal punishment. Several states still have those punishments on the books. But proposals on the November ballot in Alabama, Louisiana, Oregon, Tennessee and Vermont would bring an end to this type of criminal punishment. (RELATED: Should-Be Hero Cop Faces Prison in Wake of Anti-Police Attorney General)
The question is, how did it survive so long? Part of the reason is it allowed states to exploit cheap labor for a host of projects and, increasingly, commercial ventures, practices criminal justice reformers are trying to end:
Prison workers in the U.S. produce about $2 billion a year in goods and commodities and more than $9 billion a year in services that maintain prisons, according to the ACLU. Meanwhile, they're paid nothing in seven states and an average of about 52 cents per hour nationally, according to a report published by the group earlier this year. In many cases, they keep less than half of what they earn after deductions for tax, room and board, and other fees.
Prisoners who refuse to work are also often punished, Chase and Dolovich said, sometimes with solitary confinement or the erasure of sentence reductions for good behavior.
In 2002, the Supreme Court reviewed a case, broadly about prison officials' immunity from liability, in which an Alabama inmate was chained to a hitching post in a standing position for seven hours under the sun. The post was used as a punishment for those who refused to work as part of a chain gang, and the Supreme Court determined that it qualified as unconstitutional “cruel and unusual punishment.”
That governments have been allowed to practice slavery among inmates is despicable and indefensible. If states wish to employ inmates, so be it. But treat them as employees, not chattel. Voters should make it clear the state has no legal or moral authority to enslave anyone for any reason. (READ NEXT: Video Showing ‘Happy' John Fetterman About to Release Man Guilty of Brutal Murder Goes Viral)
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.
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You are obviously a narrow minded liberal. Glad I found this out before reading too much of your tripe.
Prisoners are in prison because they can’t be trust in the free world. They live on the tax payers dollars. They should have to work for penance. They should have to work to pay back the tax payers. Why should tax payers be the sole support for these social misfits? Tax payers have to work for their money but we are expected to just give it away because someone else doesn’t want to work?????
They are supposed to be there for rehabilitation – which rarely works – but in some cases has allowed an otherwise “misfit” to return to society as a productive individual. That said, one of the costs of having a relatively safe society is the price associated with confining these individuals who would prey on that society for as long as is necessary. I used to believe whole-heartedly in capital punishment – however after more than a decade stint as a law enforcement officer and witnessing the corruption within the judicial system as a whole (corruption is not only committed by law enforcement officers but by the judges themselves) first-hand, I could not in good conscience advocate that the government have a right or any immunity for that matter to put anyone to death just because all the t’s have been crossed and the i’s dotted (what many today call due process). The Innocence Project results by themselves prove the malice with which the government has persecuted individuals of all colors, races, and sexes without justification. Putting one innocent person to death in error is a tragedy, but murdering potentially more innocent people is nothing short of butchery or slaughter.
I will expand on what I believe you stated. The SO CALLED low pay is net pay AFTER taxes, housing and food. I have to pay all of those as well. They SHOULD be required to EARN their keep, just like I am. If they have anything left, that is a PRIVILEGE.
This is what the country is coming to under the loony left. For what ever stupid reason, they want to cuddle the criminal element, especially the black ones, at the expense of the law abiding taxpaying citizens. That’s just one more reason we need to purge every democrat from all levels of our governments, from county to federal, before they totally destroy our constitutional republic. Besides the coddling of criminals they are allowing this country to become the dumping ground for the worlds poor by not controlling our borders against the invasion by hoards of illegals. Is it any wonder this country is so screwed up?
If they refuse to work add on days or refuse to feed them anything but a liquid diet. The courts should make it mandatory with punishment for prisoners to work.
Why would anyone be opposed to prisoners having to WORK to pay THEIR debt off? Public shouldn’t have to provide food, shelter, clothing, education, medical, dental at no cost to the PRISONER. Those who are “paid” anything, should have it forwarded to their victims for REAL loses that they really suffered.