I chose this article because of the work one of my colleagues does on what we call “human trafficking.” What troubled me about “human trafficking” is that the history of the Black experience in the United States was erased. I support the inclusion of all kinds of people in the modern economics of slavery–our story is not the only story. However, some of you may have heard the term “White slavery.” “Human trafficking” reminded me of how “White slavery” always struck me as odd. Slavery is slavery–why did we need to specify victims by race? What do you think about the argument the author makes? Do you think that prison labor meets the definition of slavery? Why or why not? If so, who are the “masters”?
Using History to Make Slavery History
29
Nov
I do think prison labor meets the definition of slavery. This is because prison labor is terribly, albeit minimally, compensated. The labor is forced; inmates do not have a choice in whether to provide this labor. Even more specifically, the prison population is so vastly overpopulated with poor individuals and individuals of color that it effectively perpetuates class-based and race-based discrimination. The “masters” of this system cannot be those who work within the system itself, such as wardens and officers, as they are merely pawns in a greater scheme; many, including myself, would argue they are just trying to make their own living and do their job. Instead, the “masters” of this system are those politicians and corporate bodies of private, funding companies that work to ensure a steady supply of prisoners and, in doing so, maintain the for-profit aspect of prisons. In other words, the “masters” of the system are all individuals powerful enough to understand the ethical corruption plaguing the prison systems and dishonorable enough to continue to make decisions that continue or exacerbate these inequities.
I find of great interest the point you make regarding ”the “masters” of the system being individuals powerful enough to understand the ethical corruption that plagues prison systems and dishonorable enough to continue to make decisions that maintain or exacerbate these inequities” . You illustrate perfectly how shameful these leaders are, who despite being aware yet continue to make decisions that exacerbate existing inequalities in the U.S. prison system. In doing so, we conclude and recognize that these leaders are creating ethical problems within the prison system, but instead of addressing these problems, they choose to make decisions that contribute to the maintenance and growth of inequality.
I like this comment, Sarah, because you have taken the long view regarding the role of the “master.” You are engaged with the mechanics of the system–not individuals. Good thinking,
I am skeptical that prison labor officially meets the definition of slavery. The logic behind prison labor is entirely distinguished from that of historical African American slavery in my eyes. While there may be parallels between the two, the ultimate motives differ: one is directly as a punishment for crimes, the other was a distinct system forced only upon black Americans intended to establish racial superiority, and yield economic benefit of the white aristocracy. The evil behind slavery was entirely intentional; it was a scheme designed to exclusively brutalize one race. While black Americans are very disproportionately arrested and jailed, they make up half of the prison population, indicating that the other 50% of those forced to work are of other races. This to me proves that this system of prison labor is distinct from African American slavery, as its intention is not to benefit off the degradation of one race. The innocent victims of slavery never did anything to deserve this horrific punishment, and thus should instantly be classified as horrifically unjust.
By contrast, prison labor is a system which exists to keep inmates busy while serving their sentence. It is effectively a punishment for wrongdoing; I struggle to be sympathetic to any violent criminal who is forced to work throughout their day behind bars. That being said, there is a massive percentage of non violent offenders who are put in jail for ridiculously long amounts of time, which in my opinion does not justify any form of involuntary servitude. These crimes are minor and should realistically be treated with massive funding going into black communities to break the cycle of poverty. In a perfect prison system, violent criminals would be forced to do this prison labor, and lesser offenders would serve basically little to no time behind bars.
Will, I find your response very interesting. I agree with your point about struggling to find sympathy for violent offenders who are forced to work during their time behind bars; ultimately, forcing these individuals to work is a matter of efficiency and “filling time.” However, I disagree with your overall assertion. While the history of slavery in American is distinctly racially motivated, as Emma highlights, slavery as a broad concept and practice is not. Slavery takes many forms and need not be motivated by race to classify as such. As Emma explains, practices such as human trafficking, child labor, and domestic servitude all classify as modern forms of slavery (even the U.S. Department of State has outlined them as such).
I find one of your statements particularly interesting— “The innocent victims of slavery never did anything to deserve this horrific punishment, and thus should instantly be classified as horrifically unjust.” This statement appears to imply that incarcerated citizens deserve the punishment they receive, and therefore forcing them to work under these conditions and for minimal compensation is just. I do not entirely disagree with this point; I do think that requiring incarcerated individuals, especially violent offenders with lengthy sentences, to work can serve a punitive purpose. However, I find it difficult to classify the current system— one met with little compensation and a lack of real-world application and translation— as “just.” Currently, forcing inmates to work is an efficient practice for everyone except the inmates themselves; to me, this is the bedrock of why the current system resembles slavery. Inmates’ work provides cheap labor for companies, it fills their time in a constructive manner, making warden and officer’s jobs easier, and it lowers the cost of production, making products and services cheaper for consumers in the outside world. However, inmates learned skills providing this labor do not benefit them upon release; it is still ridiculously difficult to obtain employment. Additionally, inmates labor does not provide substantial compensation for them to purchase items from the commissary or send to their families back home. If prison labor is to exist, then it must be made efficient and purposeful for the inmate; inmates must receive benefits from their work. As long as individuals, whether incarceration or free, are exploited by others for personal and commercial gain, slavery still exists. This exploitation is clearly demonstrated in the current prison labor system. Thus, I do not believe that forced labor in the prison system, as a whole, is unsaveable and evil; it is the American practice of it that ultimately mimics slavery.
Sarah, to me the biggest moral qualm with labor as punishment is the idea that people who really don’t belong in prison are forced to do it. I think a large structural overhaul in which citizens are no longer profitable to be placed behind bars would be the ultimate means to heal the system. Losing this incentive would ensure that the majority of individuals behind bars are those who genuinely pose a threat to other Americans, and thus deserve to be seperate from the populace. In this instance, I think it is fine to underpay them and overcharge them for items while in Jail. Although it is perhaps unethical, it is also unethical to commit acts of violence and threaten the safety of other citizens. I would not lose sleep over these individuals being mistreated by capitalism.
Will, I agree with you that we should all support the incarceration of those who use violence in committing violations. The real problem is how our capitalist democracy creates violent citizens through perpetuating the violence of poverty and is indifferent to inequality in education. You and Sarah have put forth thoughtful responses to the prompt. Sarah prompted me to consider this notion of “evil.” What might we use in evaluating when what we do, and don’t do, for the least of us moves into the realm of “evil”? Evil is defined as profoundly immoral and wicked. It is also defined as “suffering, misfortune, and wrongdoing.” Do we need proof of “intent” to claim evil, or can we judge by outcomes?
I find this interesting because I was under the same broad impression, skepticism over the direct connection of prison labor and slavery. I was getting at a similar idea of the motives being different but I was more highlighting the potential benefits of labor while there are none to slavery. I think it is interesting that you think about prison labor mainly as punishment. I think if I were thinking about the labor as mostly about the punishment I might find it more similar to slavery.
Will, I enjoyed your response because you came at this from a very different perspective than I did. With that being said, I think the authors point was to highlight the important of “violent control” as the most important aspect of slavery and not race. When many Americans think of slavery they immediately imagine plantation system slavery, but the author does a nice job distinguishing that anytime one person is exerting “violent control” over others then that should qualify as slavery. The slavery aspect for prison labor doesn’t include the horrific offenders that deserve to be imprisoned, its the people that get sentenced for petty drug charges and then exploited that falls under the umbrella of slavery I think .
First, in terms of specifying victims by race when we speak of slavery as part of American history, we must keep in mind that slavery was institutionalized in the United States on the basis of race, and thus history was closely related to the disproportionate benefit of African-Americans. Specifying in terms of race to identify the victims is done in order to give recognition to the injustices that they experienced and that they continue to experience today through the American prison system. As to the second question, we must point out that the system of labor within the penitentiary system clearly fits the definition of slavery, since it is forced labor (performed without the individual’s own free will) and work under deplorable conditions that are in effect considered exploitation of prisoners. Some will claim that legally, after the abolition of slavery with the 13th amendment, forced labor by prisoners is not allowed. However, it is clearly demonstrated that state legislation has many loopholes and creates imbalance and social injustice against the black race as in the past with slavery. I can therefore state that prison labor perpetuates the same injustices and power imbalances as those associated with historical slavery. Some of the examples we can take into account to demonstrate this assertion are the low wages, the poor and precarious conditions in which they carry out the activity and the lack of options granted to incarcerated persons. Finally, with regard to the last issue, it is of great importance to point out that the “masters” in this case are clearly the entities or individuals who benefit from the work performed by the inmates; these may be private or public companies that hire cheap labor in prisons according to the needs and demand of society.
Mar, I really agreed with your point about prison labor perpetuating the same injustices and power imbalances associated with historical slavery. There are many players in the Prison Industrial Complex that exploit prisoners for profit such as private prison companies, major corporations, and politicians. I remember from one of our readings the major corporations that use prison labor such as McDonalds, Starbucks, Walmart, and many more. Politicians run campaigns on being tough on crime which gains them bi-partisan support. I also agreed that these private and public companies that hire cheap labor can be considered the “masters” of these scenarios because they are complicit in this exploitation of human labor. I was interested as to what you thought about human trafficking being labeled as a form of slavery in the article- thinking of it that ways allows for new perspective into the definition of slavery and viewing the history of slavery as enslavement of many people of different colors/backgrounds/religions and more. Slavery is also visible in the United States today not just in the carceral system but with undocumented immigrants as well as people who are human trafficked. I believe it can be argued that slavery was institutionalized before African slaves in the United States in different parts of the world however as of the present, many African-Americans are disproportionately represented in our carceral system which is the most blatant example of modern day visible slavery.
There is nothing that ties slavery specifically to one race. I agree with you that slavery is slavery and that it is simply the act of being owned by another. For instance slavery happens all over the world to people of different races and backgrounds and slavery can take multiple forms such as human trafficking or as we have studied, prison labor. In the article “Using History to Make Slavery History”, it is stated that one of the core characteristics of slavery is the presence of violent control. The different forms listed are human trafficking, debt bondage slavery, contract slavery, slavery linked to religious practices, or state sponsored forced labor. Prison labor falls under the last category. However while slavery cannot be specified by race, throughout this course and this article we have learned how African-Americans have been disproportionally targeted through history and this is incredibly evident in this article. In terms of the question, does prison labor meet the definition of slavery, I believe that the answer is yes and no. Prisoners are forced to work in unsafe conditions under the threat of longer sentences. They are paid little to nothing for labor that directly benefits the corporations with big stakes in the game. These corporations are incentivized by money which they earn with every additional body housed in their jails producing goods that they sell. While one can argue that they are being paid to for their work, they are being paid from $0.10 – $ 0.65 per hour, having to often pay for their own housing in jail, inflated commissary prices, expensive telephone calls to families, and more. One can also argue that because they have done something bad that this is prisoner’s penance to society and that they deserved to be punished for their crimes. But we can see that our failed justice system has wrongly incarcerated many individuals, Ray Hinton being just one of the many examples. Additionally many of the incarcerated are people who have been failed by the system, who didn’t receive a proper education or resources from the state. Many prisoners are jailed for non-violent crimes, typically for crime offenses with mandatory minimums. When comparing sentencing laws for crack cocaine and powder cocaine, it is easy to see how race plays a factor in the severity of these laws. Many of the people we have locked away need treatment and true rehabilitation, not being forced to work as cheap labor by the state and private corporations who just see them a body they can profit off of. Mental health treatment and drug rehabilitation is way more costly than locking someone up and putting them to work. The masters of this situation is the private prison corporations and the politicians who pass bills that “crackdown on drugs” because this ultimately ends up racially targeting the black community. They both profit off of prisoners hence the term the Prison Industrial Complex (PIC), ultimately human lives are discarded and looked at as cheap/free labor, similar to slavery, undocumented labor, and human trafficking which happens all over the world past and present. The author makes the point that we, as taxpayers, are complicit in this. Additionally by ignoring history we are allowing this cycle of slavery to continue. Instead we should ask ourselves where the problem came from and we should look to history for ways to combat this. However if we continue to ignore this or remain ignorant than we are equally complicit and become the masters as well.
Emma,
I thought your analysis of prison labor was very interesting and I agreed with each of your point. Some would say that the criminal justice system is ‘color-blind’ and it is a question of whether an individual, regardless of race, commits a crime. But as we have learned throughout this course, our criminal system is incredibly racialized. As you point out, the difference between the sentencing of crack and powder cocaine is just one example of how racism manifests in our system. But it is also manifested in the way we police neighborhoods. In the documentary we watched, one police chief admits that he profiles suspects and that his job would be impossible without doing so. Individual officers are incentivized to arrest more people either for promotions or for a financial reward. It becomes clear how race becomes a prominent indicator for law enforcement of those who are likely to have committed a crime. To describe our system as ‘color-blind’ would suggest we have become post-racial as a country when we all know that is far from being true.
I would consider prison labor to be a form of slavery today. As the article calls it, prison labor is a “state-sponsored [system] of enslavement.” There are many counterarguments against calling prison labor slavery including the compensation of prison labor and that it is used as a form of punishment for incarcerated people. Some would also argue that calling prison labor cannot be called slavery because it does not function the same as it did in the past. To address each of these points, while prison labor is compensated, the wages are almost insignificant and miniscule. As we have learned, incarcerated people often have to pay for their own fees of incarceration. This means the wages they earn cycle back into the operation of the prison system and those who own it. Secondly, while prison labor is a form of punishment, the conditions in which prisoners work under cannot be reconciled with it as a form of punishment. In the article “The Prison Industrial Complex: A Growth Industry in a Shrinking Economy,” we learned of the egregious health violations by companies such as the Federal Prison Industries (UNICOR) that uses prison labor to recycle computer parts leading, exposing them to cadmium and lead dust. And thirdly, the argument of slavery as a “then” and “now,” is the exact argument that the author is trying to make a case against. He is highlighting how slavery has transformed from the plantation to prison. And by describing slavery as a “then,” would be to erase Black history in America. The debt peonage and convict leasing system is directly tied to contemporary prison labor. To distinguish between these ‘kinds’ of slavery would to insinuate that at one point, White America progressed to the point of racial equality and true freedom for all. It would be easy to point to the prison guards and wardens as the ‘masters’ of this system since they are the ones actually interacting with incarcerated people in the day to day. However, while watching the documentary “The House I Live In,” we meet correctional officer Mike Carpenter. Carpenter describes himself as the “ultimate guard.” One who is incredibly disciplined to the rules of the institution. While he appears to be your typical ‘no-nonsense’ kind of correctional officer, he shared very progressive views on the criminal justice system. He says that the system is obviously failing. The number of people they incarcerate each year is alarmingly high for such minor infractions. Carpenter recognizes that he is just one individual in a larger system. The true masters of this system are the ones who are economically benefitting the most. This includes the corporations who trades human bodies on the stock market and the politicians who support draconian penal laws that inevitably lead to mass incarceration.
The author importantly points out the plantation to prison pipeline that his evidence indicates. I think the facts he states on page 131 indicate a problem in our system, that it disproportionately affects black people. While prison labor is legal within the confines of the criminal justice system, there are valid concerns about the conditions, wages, and potential exploitation of incarcerated individuals. An argument is that the lack of choice and fair compensation aligns with characteristics of slavery. I’m not sure how much I believe that prison labor is a form of slavery because there are an array of mitigating factors. While I don’t know if I really agree with labor being justified by the fact that it is punishment, to some extent I see a difference between prison labor and slavery because the person in prison had committed a crime and probably has some debt to society that should be repaid. I think the fact that they are paid is somewhat important, though I vehemently agree that they should be paid more especially considering they need to pay off legal fees and other fees associated with being incarcerated. I think there is more potential for prison labor to be beneficial when there is obviously no benefit to slavery. If they were paid a better wage and taught valuable skills I think there is some merit to prison labor. With that being said I do still think there are “masters” at work in the PIC. The government or private corporations that benefit from inexpensive prison labor could be seen as the “masters.” The policymakers and the people who benefit from the laws and policies that perpetuate mass incarceration, also contribute to the exploitative nature of prison labor. In order to fill the prisons they make their money from they target minority groups which adds to this “master” image.
I think the author’s point about specifying by race just helps to highlight the way “old” and “new” slavery are eerily similar and helps to confirm that there are indeed still different forms of slavery present in America today. When many people think about slavery they think of it as the old plantation style that took place “then,” and “now” since we no longer have plantations there is no slavery. I think it’s also helpful to specify victims by race because it helps us understand that the plantation system wasn’t the only type of slavery that was taking place in the U.S. When we categorize victims by race such as the Native Americans which were forcibly removed from their lands and relocated on reservations, or the eastern europeans that came over and many became a part of the chattel system it helps us to identify things that maybe look different than what many people to understand as slavery but it still falls under the slavery umbrella.
I think the author does a very good job laying out a well thought out and eloquently delivered argument highlighting that slavery, when you break it down to its most basic components, is simply the “violent control” over others. When we look at slavery “then” and also “now” we see numerous examples in the U.S. alone where individuals, corporations, and entire government systems are exerting “violent control” over people thus meeting the definition of slavery. Whether it’s in the PIC, or human trafficking of workers to help pick food in Florida the employers are exerting “violent control” over the workers holding them hostage while they reap in huge profits. I think the author does an excellent job explaining the importance of identifying the key components of what slavery entails and uses great examples to point out its persistence in America.
I agree that prison labor definitely falls under the umbrella of slavery because when you look at the similarities between “then” plantation slavery and “now” prison labor they are in essence the exact same thing. I also like the fact that the author highlights that some criminals that commit horrific crimes and deserve to be in prison should be allowed to work and help benefit the society they wronged, its when the system blatantly targets African American and Latin American people disproportionately to White Americans on instances of petty crimes like drug charges that the systems begins to take on the slavery aspect. The masters are the ones exerting “violent control” over the workers so for prison laborers it would be the private prison corporations since they own the prisons and are the ones exerting their control over them. For the human trafficking example it’s the employers that are exerting the “violent control” over them that are the masters.
This is definitely a difficult topic to come to a conclusive decision on. I understand the thought processes behind my peers’ comments above, and I see the merit in their differing points of view. However, I have some trouble aligning prison labor with the deep level of injustice interwoven in the term “slavery”. This is not to say that I am one of “the vast number of Americans… who believe, deep down, that the Civil War put an end to human bondage a century and a half ago—end of story” (125). I thoroughly disagree and sadly acknowledge that our world sees tremendously inhumane acts of slavery today, as the author and my peers have pointed out. Stewart writes, “the institutions of slavery and involuntary servitude, institutions that the nation fought a bloody war to destroy, continue to persist today, not just around the world, but indeed hidden in communities across America” (128). When discussing the exact definition of a word or what actions may fall under a broad range of meaning, there are intricate details that people may argue over. I want to provide a different perspective, not to challenge the author’s claim that history frequently gets re-written or, rather, erased – because that, too, is undeniable. But, within our prison institutions, I believe that there are factors one must consider in order to maintain a holistic view of inmates’ labor. For the average American who lives in society outside of prison, they have to work. Work is a typical part of life that I believe it would be more strange to ignore than to continue while behind bars. Additionally, though private prisons are a different problem, there is a “charge” of sorts to public institutions that each prisoner costs for them to hold. Now, as we have discussed in-depth in our class, we understand that not all incarcerated citizens are justly accused, nor are they always given appropriate punishments for their crimes. With that being said, the majority of people locked away do have a reason to be separated from the rest of society, and therefore warrant some sort of punishment. By giving them food, shelter, (albeit not some five-star hotel and resort) along with necessary medical care (in most cases), it is not unreasonable to expect some form of labor associated. I agree with Will’s first comment that the payment is also not terribly unethical, considering the extent of many crimes committed. I do not propose an across-the-board equal labor expectations for all. Rather, I believe a graduated system with appropriately assigned work could be useful. The work-labor force that already exists could absolutely do with an update and, as Sarah mentioned, should be tailored towards useful skills that could then be more applicable to job opportunities post-release, as that is the quickest way to reintegrate and produce value within society. The difference between slavery and forced labor within prison institutions largely has to do with the “crime” being committed; in the case of slavery, I believe there is none. Within an ideally-functioning penal institution, all inmates are guilty of a crime, in which case I do not disagree with required labor and low wages. I understand that we do not live in a country with an “ideal” or “perfect” system, but I do not fully support the notion that our system mirrors that of slavery or “ownership” under a “master.”