Prisoner Strikes

[Belsnickel]

We often discuss slavery as if the institution has been eradicated from this country. However, one of the most commonly overlooked pieces of the 13th Amendment is that slavery is abolished unless it is "a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted." Now, there are many prisons where the workers get paid, but it is a tiny amount, often involuntary, and so it might as well be slavery.

Starting tomorrow, many incarcerated workers are planning to go on strike. It is hard to say what impact this will have and how widespread this will actually be, but from 21 August to 09 September, this strike is planned.

From a Vox article on the planned strike:

Quote:There’s no hard estimate for how many inmates and prisons are taking part in the protests, as organizers continue to recruit more and more inmates and word of mouth spreads. But demonstrations are expected across at least 17 states.

The inmates will take part in work strikes, hunger strikes, and sit-ins. They are also calling for boycotts against agencies and companies that benefit from prisons and prison labor.

“The main leverage that an inmate has is their own body,” Sawari said. “If they choose not to go to work and just sit in in the main area or the eating area, and all the prisoners choose to sit there and not go to the kitchen for lunchtime or dinnertime, if they choose not to clean or do the yardwork, this is the leverage that they have. Prisons cannot run without prisoners’ work.”

While 2016’s protests were largely planned for just September 9 (then the 45th anniversary of the Attica uprising), they ended up taking part over weeks or months as prison officials tried to tamp down the demonstrations and mitigate the effects of the protests. This year, the protests are spread out over three weeks to make it more difficult for prison officials to crack down.

The inmates have outlined 10 national demands. They include “immediate improvements to the conditions of prisons” and “an immediate end to prison slavery.” They also target federal laws that boosted mass incarceration and have made it harder for inmates to sue officials for potential rights violations. And they call for an end to racial disparities in the criminal justice system and an increase to rehabilitation programs in prisons.

The demands are on top of specific local and regional asks that prisoners are making. For example, Sawari said, in South Carolina they’re also focused on getting prisoners the right to vote — and, of course, improving conditions in the state that helped inspire this year’s protests.

This is the first I have heard of this, and I never heard about the 2016 protests. This just crossed my Twitter feed literally about ten minutes ago. What impact, if any, do you think this will have? Do you support any of the demands being laid out?

PRESS RELEASE:

NATIONAL PRISON STRIKE AUGUST 21-SEPTEMBER 9TH, 2018 pic.twitter.com/Mzbb4e96yp

— Jailhouse Lawyers Speak #August21 (@JailLawSpeak) April 24, 2018

What do you think will be the response from correctional facilities and do you think we will ever hear about it?