Thursday, June 6, 2024

It's time to end slavery in California! Support ACA 8!

 

What you can do to support ACA 8, the measure that would end involuntary servitude (slavery) for prison inmates in California. ACA 8 has the strong support of the Quaker lobby in Sacramento, Friends Committee on Legislation of California.

History of Slavery in California 


The legacy of slavery and forced labor runs deep in  California’s history, from the exploitation of Indigenous  people in Spanish missions to Black people who were  enslaved and forced to mine for gold. This legacy goes as  far back as the first iteration of the California State  Constitution, introduced in 1849, that stated: “Neither  slavery, nor involuntary servitude, unless for the  punishment of crimes, shall ever be tolerated in this State” (Article I, Sec. 18). The following year, the racist Indian  Indenture Act criminalized everyday behavior in CA, allowing any white man who “found” an “Indian”  loitering, unemployed, frequenting public places where  liquor was sold, begging, or leading an “immoral” life to  take that charge before a judge. The judge would then  order the Indian seized and sold at public auctions  (Provision 20). 

In 1850, the federal Fugitive Slave Act required  governments and any white person to recapture people  who escaped from slave-holding jurisdictions – meaning  any person brought to California before statehood as a  slave would legally remain a slave. California  additionally passed its own Fugitive Labor Act in 1852,  essentially suspending the state constitution’s anti slavery clause, allowing free Blacks to be re-enslaved.  

In 1855, the Greaser Act legalized the arrest of  individuals with "Spanish and Indian blood" who were  perceived as violating California’s anti-vagrancy statute.  Although CA joined the Union as a “free state,” a slave  market flourished here from 1850 to 1870. While slave  trafficking faded out in the 1870s, it was tragically in  large part due to the genocide of Native Americans. 

In 1865, Congress passed the 13th Amendment, which  ended chattel slavery nationwide but allowed slavery to  exist in other forms. This slavery “exception clause”  remains in both the U.S. Constitution and our State  Constitution. 

Modern-Day Slavery in California 


Slavery did not end after the Civil War. Continuing  through the early 1940s, African Americans were  “leased out” to plantation owners and manufacturers as  cheap labor. This leasing system was replaced by “chain  gangs” – a dehumanizing practice of chaining together  incarcerated people to perform manual labor – that many  states including California profited from.  

The practice of forced prison labor and remnants of  slavery are embedded throughout California’s system of  incarceration today. Although no courts explicitly order  forced labor at criminal sentencing, finding authority in  the constitution, it is standard practice to force  incarcerated people to perform labor, often in dangerous  conditions, against their will.  

More than 95,000 Californians are currently incarcerated  in our state prison system with significant racial  disparities. African Americans account for 28% of the  prison population but are less than 6% of California’s  overall population. In addition, the lifetime chances of a  person going to prison are higher for Blacks (16.2%) and  Latinos (9.4%) than for whites (2.5%).  

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020,  the State leaned on incarcerated workers to produce  hand sanitizer, soaps, and masks. Incarcerated people  were not allowed to use the products they made to keep  themselves safe. Any concerns raised about endangering  their own health and their lives were met with threats of  harsh punishment. In fact, incarcerated people have long  faced cruel treatment for any work absences: physical  violence, solitary confinement, denial of phone calls and  family visits, and limiting participation in self-help  groups, and disciplinary write-ups that result in longer  prison terms. Such punishments, or threats of such  punishments, are often issued even when absences are  due to illness or injuries sustained through the work. 

Furthermore, research illustrates the well-documented psychological and emotional trauma laid by the hands of  modern-day slavery and forced labor. Survivors of  modern slavery experience post-traumatic stress  disorder, lack of autonomy, and diminished sense of  self. 

Dissolving the remnants of slavery and racial inequity is  more important now than ever before. California is only  1 of 16 states that still allows legalized constitutional  slavery – and it lags behind other states in removing  slavery from its state constitution. In 2022, Alabama,  Oregon, Tennessee, and Vermont joined other states that  had recently passed state constitutional amendments  prohibiting both slavery and involuntary servitude  (Nebraska and Utah in 2020; Colorado in 2018). In  2020, U.S. Senator Merkley (OR) introduced a  resolution to remove involuntary servitude as a  punishment for crime from the U.S. Constitution.  

Solution 

The End Slavery in CA Act (ACA 8) would allow Californians the  opportunity to vote to amend Article 1, Section 6 of the  State Constitution to prohibit slavery and involuntary  servitude without exception. 

For more information contact: Aldo Garcia, Assembly  Fellow, Aldo.Garcia@asm.ca.gov or (916) 319-2011 

Co-Sponsors 

The 10P Program  

A New Way of Life  

Abolish Slavery National Network 

ACLU California Action  

Aging People in Prison Human Rights Campaign All of Us or None 

Anti-Recidivism Coalition  

Anti-Violence Safety and Accountability Project  ASCRIBE  

Asian Prisoner Support Committee  

California Lawyers for the Arts 

Coalition for a Just and Equitable California Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice EDIFYE  

Freedom United 

GLIDE Foundation 

Homies Unidos  

Impact Justice  

Just Cities  

Legal Aid at Work  

Legal Services for Prisoners with Children 

March On  

Norcal Resist  

Pride In Truth  

Prison from the Inside Out 

Represent Justice 

Sister Warriors Freedom Coalition 

Starting Over Inc.  

The Love We Don’t See 

TimeDone 

Village Advocates  

Youth Leadership Institute


Thank you to those of you who were able to make it to our meeting earlier today. We shared some positive updates as we are pleased to report that ACA 8 FINALLY got referred out of the Senate Rules committee and will be moving through the Senate Public Safety, Senate Elections and Constitutional Amendments committee, Appropriations, and then the Senate floor for our final vote. We are aiming to get through all of this by June 27th in order to qualify ACA 8 for the upcoming November ballot. 


Let's keep the pressure on! Please reach out to your Senate representatives and make sure that they are in support of ACA 8. Let's continue to outreach to the Governor's office as well!

Utilize this action link from our fellow ACA 8 cosponsors ACLU Cal Action. Also, here is our ACA 8 social media toolkit.


Other Senate targets include:

Lastly, we are still looking to mobilize an action in June to help get us over the finish line! We want to organize with our Faith community so please reach out if you are connected to any networks that include faith leaders and organizations that may be willing to get loud about ACA 8! More updates are coming soon. 


In pursuit of liberation,


Jeronimo Cuauhtemoc Aguilar


--

Policy Analyst

Legal Services for Prisoners with Children-All of Us or None 

4400 Market Street 

Oakland, CA 94608

cell:530.405.6178

www.abolishbondagecollectively.org

www.prisonerswithchildren.org

jeronimo@prisonerswithchildren.org 

"We urge you to speak out, don't be afraid to lose false friends. One action is worth a thousand meaningless, compromised bills. Because one work, one courageous stand based on principle, will set the example for all of our people". - Rodolfo "Corky" Gonzales