John, become a
Color Of Change supporter this Juneteenth!
chip in to power the fight for black liberation
On Juneteenth, we celebrate the end of slavery. But the fight to abolish slavery is still going on.
Juneteenth marks the day when news of the Emancipation Proclamation reached enslaved Black people in Texas. Later, the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution officially ended chattel slavery, but with a critical — and intentional — loophole: “except as a punishment for crime.”
Mike, 150 years later, prison labor is a multibillion-dollar industry.1 And too many Black people, who are over-surveilled, over-policed and over-incarcerated, are forced into this rebranded system of slavery every day.2
CHIP IN TO HELP END THE EXPLOITATION OF
BLACK PEOPLE
After the U.S. kept slavery as a punishment for crime, states across the country rushed to criminalize Black people any way they could, especially during the Jim Crow era. The “war on drugs” and the 1994 federal Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act – AKA the Crime Bill — continued that legacy.
Decades later, little has changed at the federal level. Although prison labor often is framed as “voluntary,” most incarcerated people are made to feel like they have no choice. Working for pennies is one way for the incarcerated to have their sentence reduced – but only slightly. Refusing to work can land them in solitary confinement or even lead to a longer prison sentence.3
And just like enslaved people and Black folks under Jim Crow, incarcerated people are still “leased out” to work for private companies that profit from Black pain.4
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Prison labor is a nationwide issue, Mike — from Louisiana, where incarcerated people clean and landscape the governor’s mansion,5 to California, where they’re paid $1 an hour to risk their lives fighting forest fires.6
That’s why we need a national grassroots movement to end this form of slavery for good. Support from people like you is critical as we mobilize our members, uplift coalitions like 13th Forward7 and fight to end prison labor nationwide.
Mike, make a donation to Color Of Change today to help power this fight.
So today, as we celebrate Juneteenth and the end of chattel slavery, let’s double down in the fight for Black liberation.
Thank you for standing with us on Juneteenth.
Until Justice Is Real,
Color Of Change’s Criminal Justice & Democracy Team
References:
1. The Uncounted Workforce. NPR, 29 June 2020.
2. America Never Abolished Slavery. Huffington Post, 02 May 2015.
3. Incarcerated women risk their lives fighting California fires. It’s part of a long history of prison labor. PBS News Hour, 22 October 2017.
4. Opinion: New York Should Reject a Return to Private Prison Labor. City Limits, 10 March 2022.
5. Louisiana House passes bill to expand use of state prisoner labor. The Times-Picayune (NOLA.com), 12 July 2019.
6. California Is Running Out of Inmates to Fight Its Fires. The Atlantic, 07 December 2017.
Color Of Change is building a movement to elevate the voices of Black folks and our allies, and win real social and political change. Please help keep our movement strong.
