
How to Organize the Largest US Prison Strike Ever from Inside Prison - ashitlerferad
https://www.wired.com/2016/09/endprisonslavery/
======
feklar
BOP (feds) is the worst of all the systems when it comes to having any kind of
blog/fb/twitter or speaking to the media. A friend of mine once posted his
prison band, and apparently they weren't supposed to have access to
instruments so everybody in that picture was given 2 months adseg and my
friend they moved around prison to prison repeatedly to keep him away from any
mail. [https://www.thekindland.com/your-prison-blog-is-legal-but-
it...](https://www.thekindland.com/your-prison-blog-is-legal-but-it-will-land-
you-403)

State prisons vary where some don't care at all so long as you don't
specifically call out guards by name, you're free to keep a blog and even
criticize the warden but BOP, this is a big no.

There's some outliers to that article, many state prisons allow for min wage
now such as Arizona where female inmates can work at a polling/telemarketing
company and be paid the state minimum wage. The great thing about this is
those inmates walk out with $10,000 or so saved up and have a chance to land
on their feet instead of say, TDCJ who denies state prisoners any kind of
income whatsoever.

~~~
rblatz
If we really wanted to cut back on crime, paying prisoners a fair wage for
their labor would be a huge step in that direction. Getting out of jail and
being able to afford housing and food on your own allows you to establish
independence. Vs the system we have now that drives you right back into the
same situation you were in that most likely caused you to go to prison in the
first place.

~~~
witty_username
If you put a minimum wage that's significantly higher than the existing wage,
then nobody'll employ prisoners.

Why do you think the market's price in this case is wrong or unfair?

~~~
mattzito
There's a value to the employer to pay minimum wage, while having a "captive"
(pun somewhat intended) employee base who doesn't suddenly quit and can't go
get a better job due to unrealistic demands.

~~~
sdenton4
Seriously, prison work schemes are modern indentured servitude, or if you
like, slavery. Slave is what you call a captive employee, right? The
difference now is that the state subsidizes the scheme by feeding and housing
the slaves, and taking care of security.

Paying a minimum wage is a start in the right direction, but ultimately the
only moral endgame is abolishing forced labor and reducing the prison
population drastically.

~~~
thescriptkiddie
It's not just metaphorical slavery, it's literal. The Thirteenth Amendment
allows for the enslavement of prisoners.

> Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime
> whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the
> United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

------
Pfhreak
One of the things that was abhorrent to learn was that the 13th Amendment in
the US, which bans slavery, explicitly allows slavery or forced labor of
criminals.

We are still a country that explicitly allows slavery. Sadly, very rarely do I
encounter people who understand (or seem to care) that this is the case.

~~~
marcoperaza
You may want to call it "slavery", but most people would call it punishment
for crimes.

~~~
dredmorbius
The 13th amendment specifically calls it slavery:

"Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime
whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the
United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction."

[https://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/13thamendment.htm...](https://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/13thamendment.html)

~~~
marcoperaza
Did you just decide to ignore that whole "nor involuntary servitude" clause?
Slavery is specifically a system in which people are property that can be
bought and sold.

Either way, what it's called is irrelevant. I see nothing wrong with mandatory
labor being part of a criminal sentence. It is part of repaying your debt to
society.

~~~
elicash
Constitution says involuntary servitude AND slavery are both are allowed if
someone is convicted, though. I actually wasn't aware of this and find it
quite shocking that it explicitly allows slavery in that instance.

What it's called helps contextualize the history behind our laws, how they
came to be.

------
nxzero
Pretty obvious that prisons exploit prisoners in unjustified ways to the
benefit of private enterprises, fail to protect prisoners they are responsible
for watching, etc.

_____

NYC spends $168,000 a year per prisoner according to the NY Times:
[http://mobile.nytimes.com/2013/08/24/nyregion/citys-
annual-c...](http://mobile.nytimes.com/2013/08/24/nyregion/citys-annual-cost-
per-inmate-is-nearly-168000-study-says.html)

Why We Let Prison Rape Go On
[http://mobile.nytimes.com/2015/04/18/opinion/why-we-let-
pris...](http://mobile.nytimes.com/2015/04/18/opinion/why-we-let-prison-rape-
go-on.html)

Abussive Phone Rates
[https://www.prisonphonejustice.org](https://www.prisonphonejustice.org)

Etc.

~~~
JBReefer
There are no private prisons in New York State

~~~
nxzero
Yes, that's correct, though it doesn't mean NY and NYC don't
outsource/insource service at rates that're unreasonably by any measure either
due to cost or failure to provide reasonable service.

For examples, funding for pensions assumes that the state will maintain a set
population of prisoners - which to me seems at odds of what longer objectives
should be.

------
brudgers
Related: [https://www.rt.com/usa/358870-prison-protests-work-
strike/](https://www.rt.com/usa/358870-prison-protests-work-strike/)

