American history

Name

Professor

Class

Date

Are Prisons Obsolete

Introduction

In the book Are Prisons Obsolete ? by Angela Y . Davis , she argues for the abolition of the present prison system . The book outlined the disturbing history behind the institution of prisons . Davis traced the evolution of the prison system from a slave camp to today 's multimillion industry serving the interests of the chosen few . Instead of solving the crime problem , prison system introduced a social ill that needs to be addressed . The book pushes for a eradication of the

system and institution of revolutionary ways of dealing with crime and punishment

The New Slave Trade

The abolition of slavery through the Thirteenth Amendment resulted to shortage in workers and increase in labor costs . The white ruling classes needed to recreate the convenience of the slavery era . Realizing the potential of prisons as source of cheap and legal labor , they orchestrated new legislations that include a variety of behaviors not previously treated as criminal offense . These laws shoot the number of prisoners to the roof

After reconstruction , prisoners are leased ' to plantation owners They are worked to death without benefits and legal protection , a fate even worse than slavery

Prison Economics

Today , while the pattern of leasing prisoner labor to the plantation owners had been reduced , the economic side of the prison system continues . Some corporations had found more subtle but nevertheless more profitable means of exploiting the system . The book reported that money is made through...