As we explore the 13th Amendment and its application as well as the fallback which has resulted in mass incarceration (modern day slavery), we must also delve into how this Amendment to the Constitution is in violation of every citizens Universal Human Rights, especially the so called American Negro who through chattel slavery were freed into conditions of poverty and disenfranchisement which caused many of them to be placed back into slavery/involuntary servitude, and still does today.
The 13th Amendment states:
"Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime whereof the person shall have been duly convicted shall exist within the United States or any place subject to its jurisdiction."
This Amendment has been the subject of many conversations pertaining to mass incarceration and the prison labor industry, but was not been addressed is how this amendment of the U.S. Constitution is in direct conflict with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. I will expound on this conflict, but first a little history.
On December 10, 1948, the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Following this Historic Act the Assembly called upon all member countries to publicize the text of the Declaration and "to cause it to be disseminated, displayed, and read and expounded principally is schools and other educational institutions without distinction based on political status of countries or territories."
Now, for anyone who has never rear the Universal Declaration of Human Rights it is incumbent as a sentient being that you do so to be aware of the rights which are universally accepted and recognized by human beings all over the planet. This sets the stage for you incorporation into the international and cosmopolitan community. The Preamble to his document explains the purpose of such a Declaration, and the 30 articles that follow address a wide array of subjects, all necessary to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom.
For those who are defendants of the Transatlantic slave trade (Black Holocaust) where over 100 million Blacks died via this crime against humanity, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights holds a very species dial place in the pursuit of our total and complete liberation. In my previous article entitled "Behind Poverty Lines" I address how the 13th Amendment is connected to modern day slavery in the form of the prison labor industry, and how the criminalization of poverty out o chattel slavery has led to the state of mass incarceration that we face today. This only scratches the surface, for we are human beings before anything else, therefore our rights as such must be enforced that we may enjoy the liberties which should be granted to all human beings on the planet earth.
As human beings a prisoner deserves even the most basic human rights, and since slavery is one of the most debased things that one human being can force upon another, the status of prisoners under the 13th Amendment must be scrutinized. For those who opposed slavery, abolitionists never talked of reforming slavery. Freedom fighters never talked of reforming Jim Crow. They fought to abolish these things. Well the truth is that the 13th Amendment did in fact reform slavery as it was abolished "except as a punishment for crime." This means that it has not been completely abolished and in order to do so we would have to abolish prisons, (but more on that later).
As member of the United Nations General Assembly, the United States of America ha pledged to uphold and enforce the articles given within the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, but America has been and proceeds to be in violation of the very declaration that the country has sworn to uphold through its ratification of the 13th Amendment. Article 4 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states:
"No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall prohibited in all their forms."
Because the United States allows slavery by way of the 13th Amendment which states that slavery shall be abolished except as a punishment for a crime whereof the person shall have been duly convicted, it is in direct violation of "Article 4" of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. So how can the United States both enforce the Constitution (namely the 13th Amendment) and also be a member of the United Nations General Assembly when its proclamation condemns the very act of slavery which is sanctioned by the constitution?
There is no doubt that the Human Rights Declaration outright prohibits atrocities such as the Black Holocaust, but somehow the 13th Amendment which supposedly put an end to that crime against humanity, that actually reformed slavery, has flown under the radar. So what is the solution?
Well, first and foremost, we must make the public aware of the violation of human rights that is inherent in the very ratification of the 13th Amendment. There must be an outcry from citizens who realize that if they are ever convicted of a crime (any crime) they are for all intended purposes, classified as slaves and their human rights are therefore being violated. Once we awaken the consciousness of the people we can begin the process of holding the system accountable for the violations of human rights. For those whose citizenship within this country is the result of their ancestors being brought to these shores for slave labor, this human rights violation is even more egregious, for the chattel slavery that they endured for over three centuries made them prime candidates for falling victim to the criminal loophole in the abolishment of slavery. The present culture of criminality, which no doubt has its root in poverty, has created generations of 13th Amendment slaves. Many of them were destined for such, for without reparations, the social and economic conditions of newly freed slaves has ultimately led to the neo- slavery of over 1 million blacks out of the 2.3 million people in state and federal prisons. The importance of human rights cannot be overstated. When the mass incarceration of blacks is linked to a violation of human rights via the 13th Amendment, it brings into question all of the deficiencies produced by the enslavement of blacks which has caused them to be susceptible to the many traps laid within a system of white supremacy. It is not by chance that Blacks make up approximately 12% of the U.S. population but over half of the 2.3 million people in prison. If crime can be linked overwhelmingly to poverty, and poverty within the Black community can be linked in many ways to slavery, then it stands to reason that the abolishment of slavery "completely" would also mean the elimination of poverty. If this is so then the failure to do so has inevitably resulted in criminal activity which in turn can place those who commit such criminal acts into the status of neo-slaves. The truth is that although Blacks have suffered through the ordeal of chattel slavery, the reforming of the institution of slavery via the 13th Amendment has resulted in the inclusion of other ethnicities in a new form of slavery through classism. The working class and poor often find themselves on the wrong side of the law. This law is overwhelmingly shrouded in white supremacy but still affects many whites as well because true white supremacy has always been expressed through white privilege and that privilege has always been exemplified through wealth and social status. In this day and time the poor white has been put into the same category as the poor black. This is because the imperialistic agenda has everything to do with the control of resources, and through systemic white supremacy the poor white and black (and other) are left at the bottom fighting over dust. This is why the 13th Amendment is so crucial, because it sets the stage for the incorporation of everyone born in this country into a system of rulership through the 14th Amendment, where due process of the law allows prosecution for crimes where you can be deprived of life, liberty, and property placing you in the status of a slave. For the blatant violation of our human right to be free from slavery and the slave trade in all their forms, the United States must be called out. Though no one individual can file charges against a sovereign nation, if we raise our voices loud enough we can surely gain the support of other nations who bear witness to the Black Holocaust (pre-emancipation and afterwards), for the majority of the Black nation still suffers as members of the lower class with seemingly no meaningful relief in sight. While there are organizations such as the ACA (American Correctional Association) that are moving to have the 13th Amendment abrogated, there is much more that must be done, for even if it is changed, the impression that is left upon the moral fabric of this nation must be addressed, otherwise such a change would be cosmetic at best. This fight must be taken to Congress to have the 13th Amendment changed with a new Amendment in the same manner that the 18th Amendment which prohibited the sale of liquor was altered by the 21st Amendment, making the sale of liquor legal. This change will ensure that "all" of the human rights of even those who are convicted of a crime are protected. This is because even those who are convicted are still citizens and human beings. It is the duty of those of us who are aware to spread the truth. We must expose all of the proverbial skeletons that dangle within the closet of this nation, and then proceed to put meat on dry bones. Let us press on. Forward ever, backward never!
Hassan Shabazz, #VAPOC, Augusta Correctional Center