1977 poster from Luis Gonzalez of the Royal Chicano Air Force
[Luis C. GONZALEZ (b. 1953, aka Louie-the-foot).]
[Announcement Poster for] Committee to Abolish Prison Slavery. [California: 1977].
Two-color silkscreen on wove paper (22 ¾ x 17 ½ inches; 577 x 445 mm).
Excellent condition.
A powerful image which is, unfortunately, still relevant today
“It is 2021 and slavery and involuntary servitude is still legal in the United States.
Passed by Congress on January 31, 1865, the 13th Amendment of the US Constitution aimed to abolish slavery, but in reality, the amendment allowed slavery to remain legal
Section I of the amendment reads:
‘Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.”
The “Exception Clause”, also known as the Punishment Clause, made it possible for slavery to be used as a method of punishment, allowing the government to legally subject people incarcerated across the United States to forced labor. But what is legal is not what is just.
That is why we are asking states and US Congress to abolish the Punishment Clause in state constitutions and amend the 13th Amendment.
The Punishment Clause is not just a glaring fault in the US Constitution — several state constitutions contain identical language. Already we have witnessed Colorado, Utah, and Nebraska vote overwhelmingly in favor of striking the slavery Punishment Clause from their state constitutions and today several states aim to follow their lead.’
(https://www.freedomunited.org/advocate/amendthe13th/)
Reference:
https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/13030/hb2w1007f3/
- Sold By: Shadowrock Rare Books
- Contact Person: Adam Langlands
- Country: United States
- Email: [email protected]
- Telephone: 001-860-248-1547
- Preferred Payment Methods: Paypal, US$ checks and wire transfers, major credit cards through paypal
- Trade Associations: AA Approved
