"The 13th Amendment, when it abolished slavery, did so except for convicts. Through the prison system, the vestiges of slavery have persisted." ~ Angela Davis

Every now and then we get a piece of information that makes us sit up and take notice.  My moment came recently when reading up on prison labor in the United States.

We all know that prisoners work while they are incarcerated.  Aside from the familiar task of making license plates, there are still chain gangs employed throughout the south and several states have explored the use of prison labor to work the agricultural fields after Latino immigrants fled the tough immigration laws enacted in some southern states, namely Georgia and Alabama.

We may also know that prisoners are often paid, albeit very little money for their labor.  But how many realize that that by nature of being in prison, as mandated by our Constitution, prisoners could be compelled or even forced to work and that payment is entirely optional?

And how many of us know that our Constitution specifically states that prisoners are slaves?

Yes, slaves.

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