The reason it won’t change is because states like Alabama are making 450 million annually from prisoner slave labor. "The inmates work against their will and the ADOC takes 40% of gross earnings “purportedly ‘to assist in defraying the cost of his/her incarceration’”.
Israel calls hostage-taking without charges or trial “administrative detention”, states call slavery “convict leasing”. The world is barely more compassionate than it was during colonial times, the authorities are just better at hiding it behind language and laws.
I think there is one thing we could do that would make it this more acceptable. And that is to guarantee everyone’s right to vote. Including prisoners. They must be allowed to vote in the state in which they reside.
Just that little change would see so many states like Alabama Texas and Kansas trying to get rid of large prison systems. They have them generally for the sole purpose of disenfranchisement. If all of a sudden jail was not a system for disenfranchisement, and worse, those being housed there had a say in the local governments. Governments. You would suddenly see a much bigger focus on reducing overall prison populations and rehabilitation.
The reason it won’t change is because states like Alabama are making 450 million annually from prisoner slave labor. "The inmates work against their will and the ADOC takes 40% of gross earnings “purportedly ‘to assist in defraying the cost of his/her incarceration’”.
Israel calls hostage-taking without charges or trial “administrative detention”, states call slavery “convict leasing”. The world is barely more compassionate than it was during colonial times, the authorities are just better at hiding it behind language and laws.
I think there is one thing we could do that would make it this more acceptable. And that is to guarantee everyone’s right to vote. Including prisoners. They must be allowed to vote in the state in which they reside.
Just that little change would see so many states like Alabama Texas and Kansas trying to get rid of large prison systems. They have them generally for the sole purpose of disenfranchisement. If all of a sudden jail was not a system for disenfranchisement, and worse, those being housed there had a say in the local governments. Governments. You would suddenly see a much bigger focus on reducing overall prison populations and rehabilitation.