Prisoners can be forced to work in the US, to my knowledge.
Penal labor is permitted under the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits slavery except as a punishment for a crime where the individual has been convicted.[1] The courts have held that detainees awaiting trial cannot be forced to work.[14] However, convicted criminals who are medically able to work are typically required to do so in roles such as food service, warehouse work, plumbing, painting, or as inmate orderlies.[15]According to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, inmates earn between 12-40 cents per hour for these jobs, which is below the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour.[15] There have been proposals of ideas to help incarcerated workers obtain better wages and improved working conditions through unionizing prison labor.
The user is clearly wrong, but they’re wrong in a way that’s incredible common among Americans. It’s not their fault, exactly, they’ve been taught to think that slavery is okay from birth. That all said, I don’t think their post actually violates the rules and they’re clearly open to discussion on the issue.
My guy, it simply isn’t slavery. These inmates are entirely free to just not do this type of work.
Yes, there is actual slavery in US prisons. There is mandatory labor. It’s fucked up.
That said, unless I’ve missed something critical, this is not one of those situations. They had to choose to apply to the firefighting position.
But in this case they are volunteers. They specifically applied to the firefighting program.
There’s certainly cause for discussion about the ethics, etc. but calling it slavery or involuntary servitude is hyperbole.
The 100+ page report at https://www.aclu.org/publications/captive-labor-exploitation-incarcerated-workers makes note of this:
More than three quarters of incarcerated people surveyed (76%) report facing punishment—such as solitary confinement, denial of sentence reductions, or loss of family visitation—if they decline to work.
Calling them volunteers is the hyperbole.
Anyway, give the report a read, yeah.
I think you’re conflating the general issue of inmate labor with the particular issue of inmate firefighters.
