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Convict leasing poisoned our society for near 70 years. Evan Tucker writes about what it is, how it came to be, and how it effects us today.
Convict leasing: The untold stain in america's story
Convict leasing: The untold stain in america's story
By Evan Tucker
By Evan Tucker
Introduction
Introduction
American children typically grow up in an education system that teaches us a toned down version of our history. It often goes something along the lines of the Mayflower, no taxation without representation, war, more war, then Abe Lincoln freed the slaves. While aspects of this story we learned as kids may be true, the American education system does not tell the full story. Even in high school, your US History teacher or Government teacher may have told you that the 13th amendment abolished slavery. However, this is not completely correct.
13th amendment
13th amendment
Originally, the intention of the 13th amendment was to end slavery. It is stated in the U.S Constitution, “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.” The phrase “except for as a punishment for a a crime whereof the party shall be duly convicted” has been used throughout our history to enslave prisoners. During the post Civil War era (Reconstruction) and beyond, this loophole was grossly exploited, and subsequently created a prison boom, blowing up the African American prison population and creating a system of labor called “convict leasing.” States leased out convicts to plantation owners for cheap, which henceforth created profit for both the state and plantation owners.
Source: Steiner Show
Convict leasing
Convict leasing
Source: The Conversation
After the introduction of convict leasing, the incentive to keep an enslaved person alive went away. Prior to the 13th amendment, if an owner worked an enslaved person to death, they lost profit. However, convict leasing stripped that, as it made replacing them more accessible and cheaper. The oppressive system met its demise in the early 20th century after, unsurprisingly, a white person fell at the hands of it. Martin Tabert, a young white man was charged with vagrancy. Vagrancy, among others, is one of the crimes created in order to buff up the prison population and create more labor in the convict leasing system. Khalil Gibran Muhammed, a professor at Harvard University, says that “In Alabama in 1850, 99% of the people who were incarcerated were white. In Alabama by the early 1880’s, 85% of the people who were incarcerated were black.” Tabert was leased as a convict in Florida, where he was flogged to death. After much backlash following the death of Tabert, Gov. Cary A. Hardee of Florida abolished the system in the state in 1923. This is one of many examples of America’s blatant history with racism. The U.S government creates a system of oppression and, when it hurts someone of the white populism, it is suddenly deemed immoral.
Repercussions
Repercussions
Even though convict leasing may not be alive in its past form today, it has left a ripple effect that has changed how our prison systems work. The number of incarcerated are still exploding, which were nonetheless aided by the Nixon’s War on Drugs, and Clinton’s 1994 Crime Bill. Although Clinton has denounced this bill, the damaging effect of it is still seen today. The United States disproportionatly imprisons African Americans. According to VICE News, “African Americans are being incarcerated at nearly 5 times the rate of White Americans.” Also, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, 38.3% of inmates are Black, despite making up a far lower percentage of the population. In the U.S, we have private, for profit prisons. The more people are imprisoned, the more profit the government rakes in. Fortunately, President Biden has signed an executive order to address this racial inequity by “banning all private prison contracts by the federal government.” Even though this is a step in the right direction, there is still more progress to be made in our prison systems, which are designed to punish rather than reform.
Source: The Ground Truth Project
Conclusion
Conclusion
It is important that Americans acknowledge our history, and how its lasting impacts have shaped our world today. There is so much to learn outside of the classroom. Something you could do to further you knowledge of our history would be to watch the documentary 13th on Netflix. It sets a good basis of what convict leasing is, and how the government profits off of our prison system. The incarceration of a human being should not be used as a profit incentive.
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