Is Slave Labor Still Legal In America?

Across the US, prisoners are required to work for little to no pay and are punished if they refuse. Is prison labor comparable to slave labor?


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[multiawesomeness]

Love the stories always so interesting and bring up great points.

[arrowsfitz]

by far, my favorite episode on this channel!

[ssbmfan]

Good video, but I was hoping you'd go into more detail about drug laws. Incarceration increased in the 80's, the same time the drug war began, with blacks being disproportionally targeted.

[franciscolemus]

With some criminals it is simply not enough sending them to prison, as punishment. They must be sent to prison for punishment! They cost the state and tax payers too much.

[WorldwideDarts]

Here's an idea of mine. I want to start a union with prisoner's in the USA. If I could get all of them to totally stop working in prison then what would the states possibly do? Keep in mind, I'm talking about minimum and medium security prisoners. But if they all of a sudden stopped working in the kitchen and out on the grounds then who would serve the food? Who would keep the prison's looking nice?
They would have to hire civilian help and that would cost mega $$$. It wouldn't work at all. They would have to release 1000's of them! The prison's 100% depend on the labor of the actual inmates.
So the prisoner's in fact, are keeping themselves locked up by doing all the jobs they do for just a few cents per hour.

[frozeneternity]

Very interesting and insightful.

Are there also not a lot of private prisons in the USA? Do they have prison labor programs?

[rajdivecha]

Wo! how cruel are humans (or is it just white humans I wonder). This stuff is happening since many years, some knew about it, rest had no idea that this was going on. So, is this going to end? Will the 13th amendment ever change?

[callisto]

I wish the government would be more responsible.

[mr.orange]

How many of them are in prison over contempt of court? Like with "child support" and "Alimony"?

[liliencalvel]

I believe criminals should be made to work. Should they be treated unjustly or in a dehumanizing way in doing so? No. A man learns moral in working. Learning that moral makes him a better person when he goes back into the world.

[JesseKubrak]

When you try to make somebody feel as though they're wrong or the criminal case approve or disapprove what you're saying and you're still trying to be violence or profit or benefit off of them because you push things to be right instead of them being right or you manipulate them

[TheInsaiyan]

Whats the problem?
Prison Laber should be more common. If the prisoners want or dont. You shouldnt care.
Instead of wasting Taxpayers money by just "locking them up".

Dont be emotional. Thats the most logical thinking and also helps the prisoner to have an schedule every day to bring some Order in therír life.

[JesseKubrak]

I have to be a criminal when you force things on people who are you manipulate them to doing things that they normally wouldn't do themselves you are the criminal of them

[fracissaw]

Prisoners are provided with food, water and shelter. This costs a lot of tax money and prison labor seems to balance it out. There are also other perks that are provided. I`m not supporting this but they are being "paid".

[UnderGod-ielk]

So we should pay for fuck ups? You in jail working your ass off? It's not our fault it was your choice